Work-Life Balance Scale

WLB Constructs

Hayman (2005) developed a psychometric instrument to measure WLB in organizations. A 15-item scale had been adapted from a 19-item scale originally developed by Fisher-McAuley et al. (2003) that was designed to capture employee perceptions on WLB. The 15-item scale measured Work Interference with Personal Life (WIPL), Personal Life Interference with Work (PLIW), and Work Personal Life Enhancement (WPLE) as three constructs of WLB.

Fisher-McAuley et al. (2003) examined the relation between employees’ beliefs about having a balance between work and personal life and the feeling of job stress, job satisfaction, and reasons why an employee would quit his or her job. They simplified the WLB by placing three measurable dimensions, namely: work interference with personal life; personal life interference with work; and work and personal life enhancement. The dimensions indicate that interference of work in personal life and on the other hand the interference of life issues in work related matters are important to study while understanding work-life balance related issues. Constructs of WLB are:

Construct 1: Work Interference with Personal Life (WIPL)

According to Hayman (2005), this construct includes work related factors that impact an individual’s personal life. It measures the impact of work on personal life. The seven items measured by this construct are: 1) My personal life suffers because of work 2) My job makes personal life difficult 3) I neglect personal needs because of work 4) I put personal life on hold for work 5) I miss personal activities because of work 6) I struggle to juggle work and non-work and 7) I am unhappy with the amount of time for non-work activities.

Construct 2: Personal Life Interference with Work (PLIW)

Hayman (2005) explains the second construct as the impact of or the interference of the personal life on work. It measures the reverse phenomenon i.e. the impact of personal life on the work of individuals. The four items measured are: 1) My personal life drains me of energy for work 2 ) I am too tired to be effective at work 3) My work suffers because of my personal life and 4) It is hard to work because of personal matters.

Construct 3: Work Personal Life Enhancement (WPLE)

The third construct explains how work and personal life enhance each other. The items help understand the support and enhancement provided by work on personal life and vice-versa. The four items measured are: 1) My personal life gives me energy for my job 2) My job gives me energy to pursue personal activities 3) I have a better mood at work because of personal life and 4) I have a better mood because of my job.

Development of Research Instrument

The final survey instrument based on the above constructs contained the following items:

Independent Variables: Measures of Work-Life Balance (WLB)

• Work Interference with Personal Life (WIPL)
• Personal Life Interference with Work (PLIW)
• Work Personal Life Enhancement (WPLE)

WLB was measured using a 5-point Likert scale anchored with the end points 1=strongly disagree to 5=strongly agree. These descriptors were chosen to balance or neutralize any tendency to over-report difficult or unacceptable behaviours and conditions faced by the respondents at their workplace (Fairbrother and Warn, 2003). Five-point scale has been commonly used in WLB research (e.g. Boyar et al. 2003; Fairbrother and Warn 2003; Forsyth and Polzer-Debruyne 2007). Fairbrother and Warn (2003) further noted that ambiguity in questions lead to confusion amongst respondents, thereby altering the meaning of the question. This lead to error in the data collected through the questionnaires. Arthur and Boyles (2007) point out that researchers should design questionnaire items that capture the specific substantive focus of the component being assessed. Hence, efforts were made to keep the items as simple, specific and objective as possible.

The research instrument was developed in three stages:

Stage 1: Identification of measures/constructs from literature and adaptation of the questionnaire

Extensive review of literature was carried out to have a thorough understanding of the measures and constructs of WLB, teaching satisfaction and job satisfaction. An initial draft of the questionnaire was developed.

Stage 2: Modification in draft questionnaire on the basis of inputs/suggestions from academics/researchers

During the second stage, the expertise of academics in India and Oman was sought through personal meetings and e-mails. Four researchers/academics were contacted; two were domain experts and two were RM experts. They were requested to critique the content and format of the questionnaire, enabling the researcher to finalize the constructs and its items and to modify the questionnaire leading to a stronger and more valid instrument.

Stage 3: Translation of the questionnaire into Arabic for effective data collection

As the data collection had to be carried out in Oman, it was considered vital to get the research instrument translated in Arabic, the national language of Oman. A large number of HEI teachers are more conversant in Arabic in comparison to English, hence, there was a need have a bilingual questionnaire.

To avoid discrepancies in translation, back translation method is suggested by Green and White (1976). In a study conducted by Berkanovic (1980) on Hispanic individuals, some of the respondents were interviewed in Spanish whereas the rest of the group was interviewed in English. As Abu-Shanab (2011) pointed out, any research conducted using a different language but failed to utilize the backward translation would yield inaccurate results. Backward translation will definitely help decrease the influence of the language and increase the reliability of the research instrument (Brislin 1976; Su and Parham 2002).

Therefore, the questionnaire was translated into Arabic by a professional translator. Two Omani researchers, experts in spoken/written English and Arabic, translated the Arabic questionnaire back to English. Some changes were made to the draft questionnaire on the basis of the

inputs of the experts. Here it is important to note that all questionnaires were bilingual, giving the respondent a choice to read in either or both languages.

Method of Analysis

A measurement model is a graphical structure that describes the relationship between latent variables and observed variables (Silva and Scheines 2005) and assists in describing how effectively the observed indicators serve as a measurement instrument for the latent variables. According to Garver and Mentzer (1999), specifying the measurement model involves assigning indicators, which are actual items of the questionnaire to a construct or latent variable. An extensive measurement analysis gives confidence in terms of findings that reflect accuracy in the constructs. Furthermore, empirically reliable and valid scales can be used on different populations in studies to be conducted in the future. Measurement scales must exhibit one-dimensionality, reliability and validity (Green et al. 2006).

For this study, measurement analysis was performed on three scales viz. WIPL, PLIW and WPLE. In order to assess the one-dimensionality of the study scales, both exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were performed. Scale reliability and validity were also assessed.

Work-Life Balance Scale items:

Q. 8. My personal life suffers because of work.

Q. 7. I miss personal activities because of work.

Q. 5. I neglect personal needs because of work.

Q. 10. I put personal life on hold for work.

Q. 12. I struggle to juggle work and nonwork.

Q. 2. My job makes personal life difficult.

Q. 14. I am happy with the amount of time for non-work activities.

Q. 1. My job gives me energy to pursue personal activities.

Q. 15. I am in a better mood because of my job.

Q. 9. I am too tired to be effective at work.

Q. 6. I find it hard to work because of personal matters.

Q. 11. My personal life drains me of energy for work.

Q. 4. My work suffers because of my personal life.

Q. 3. I am in a better mood at work because of personal life.

Q. 13. Personal life gives me energy for my job.