Work characteristics as well as work-family balance have been consistently identified as an important factor shaping the well-being of workers. This study adds to the existing literature by considering how work-family conflict and several other work characteristics impact the life satisfaction of workers in Cyprus. Additionally, this study examines whether these effects vary by gender and type of occupations. The research questions are addressed using the third wave from the European Quality of Life Survey data and focusing on the sample from Cyprus (N = 1000). The findings indicate that poor working conditions and higher work-family conflict are negatively correlated with life satisfaction. Moreover, results show that this effect varies by gender and occupation type. Specifically, this negative effect is found to be greater for men than for women, as well as more among self-employed. Overall, this study contributes to the literature by being one of the few studies that explores the effect of work characteristics on life satisfaction in Cyprus and also by highlighting the moderating effect of type of employment and gender, and therefore deepening the understanding of the relationship between work-to-family conflict and life satisfaction.
Deniz Yucel is an Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology at William Paterson University in New Jersey, in the United States. She had her MA and PhD in Sociology from the Ohio State University in the United States. She specializes in the sociology of family, sociology of education, social stratification and work-family balance. Her current research is on the intersection of work and family, particularly testing some of the consequences of the family–work struggle on marital outcomes, and on social stratification, in particular some of the early processes of social stratification within the life course.
