اثر عدم امنیت شغلی و رفتار فرزندداری والدین بر خوداثربخشی و نگرش کار جوانان

Drawing on the spillover mechanism, the relationships among parental job insecurity, authoritarian parenting behaviors, youth’s self-efficacy, and work attitudes were examined. Specifically, parental job insecurity was hypothesized to be positively associated with (1) authoritarian parenting behaviors, and (2) youth’s perception of parental job insecurity. In turn, we hypothesized that both authoritarian parenting behaviors and youth’s perceptions of parental job insecurity were negatively associated with youth’s self efficacy. Finally, self-efficacy was predicted to be positively associated with youth’s work attitudes. Data were collected from 178 management undergraduates and their parents. Structural equation modeling results suggested that paternal job insecurity was positively associated with authoritarian parenting behaviors while maternal job insecurity was negatively associated with authoritarian parenting behaviors. Additionally, while the relationship between mothers’ authoritarian parenting behaviors and youth’s self-efficacy was supported, the relationship between fathers’ authoritarian parenting behaviors and youth’s self-efficacy was not. Youth’s self efficacy was positively associated with their work attitudes. Implications of the findings are discussed.

Recent changes in the world and the workplace have generated considerable feelings of job insecurity among employees of today. Typically defined as individuals’ “powerlessness to maintain desired continuity in a threatened job situation” (Greenhalgh & Rosenblatt, 1984, p. 438), job insecurity is a stressful experience for employees and has received considerable attention from various researchers (e.g., Lim, 1996 and Lim, 1997). More recently, a new stream of research has emerged. Led generally by Barling and his associates (e.g., Barling, Dupre, & Hepburn, 1998; Barling & Mendelson, 1999; Barling, Zacharatos, & Hepburn, 1999; Stewart & Barling, 1996), these studies suggest that the effects of job insecurity go beyond the insecure employee. Indeed, Stewart and Barling (1996) found that children of job insecure individuals experienced social and school-related problems. While the spillover mechanism, defined as the “effects of work and family on one another that generate similarities between the two domains” (Edwards & Rothbard, 2000, p. 180), has received considerable attention in the literatures on stress and work-family conflict (e.g., Kinnunen, Gerris, & Vermulst, 1996; Wallace, 1997), these studies have not focused on on job insecurity or youth’s self-efficacy per se. This study contributes to the job insecurity literature by using the spillover mechanism as a framework to examine the effects of parents’ job insecurity on youth’s self-efficacy and work attitudes. The relationships among the main variables in our study are depicted in Fig. 1. Full-size image (5 K) Fig. 1. Hypothesized structural equation model. Figure options Our study is distinct from past studies in that we have chosen to focus on the effects of parental job insecurity’s on youth aged 19–24 in an Asian setting, specifically Singapore. Singapore has not been spared from the recent global economic instability. Understandably, considerable feelings of job insecurity are generated among individuals, which we expect to affect their children, even when the children are nearing or in their twenties. In Singapore, it is not uncommon for children to continue living with their families (e.g., parents, siblings, and grandparents) well into adulthood—and even after they establish their own families—plausibly due to economic reasons, and the general emphasis that most Asian cultures place on family values. Such living arrangements also render these youth relatively unexposed to the realities of work since they generally do not work at all until they complete their studies. Thus, because of this continued, albeit decreasing, dependence on their parents, we expect that the youth in our study are more influenced by their parents and their parents’ life events, compared to their Western counterparts. In light of the ages of the youth under study, it should be noted that the term “children” as used in this paper will refer to the offspring of the job incumbents in our study, unless otherwise stated. Our study further differs from Barling and his associates’ previous research efforts in that we posit that it is plausible for job insecurity to directly, rather than indirectly, as suggested by Barling and his colleagues, affect individuals’ authoritarian parenting behaviors. Authoritarian behaviors refer to the demonstration of strict parental control, with minimal parental participation and support for the children (Gecas & Schwalbe, 1986). Considerable evidence exists in the literature regarding the direct effects of occupational stressors on parenting behaviors (e.g., Almeida, Wethington, & Chandler, 1999; Kinnunen et al., 1996). Thus, given that job insecurity is stressful, we expect it to influence parenting behaviors directly. Additionally, while perceptions of parental job insecurity have been examined in conjunction with children’s work attitudes (e.g., Barling et al., 1998), to date, limited research has examined how perceived parental job insecurity can affect their children’s work attitudes through children’s self-efficacy. Since parenting behaviors and perceived parental job insecurity may affect the further development of youth’s efficacy beliefs, it is worthwhile to examine these relationships. 1.1. Job insecurity and authoritarian parenting behaviors Individuals experiencing work stress have been found to be more irritable and hostile in their family interactions, leading to more punishing and unresponsive parenting behaviors with their children (e.g., Almeida et al., 1999). Additionally, research suggests that individuals who are emotionally and physically fatigued from their experience of work stress tend to be less sensitive, participative, and supportive where their children are concerned (e.g., Repetti & Wood, 1997). Taken together, these research findings suggest that spillover does indeed occur such that parents who are stressed at work may similarly be stressed at home, and engage in authoritarian parenting behaviors with their children. Thus, this leads us to the following hypotheses: Hypothesis 1a. Paternal job insecurity is positively associated with paternal authoritarian parenting behaviors. Hypothesis 1b. Maternal job insecurity is positively associated with maternal authoritarian parenting behaviors. 1.2. Parental job insecurity and youth’s perceived parental job insecurity Perceived parental job insecurity refers to the level of parental job insecurity as perceived by the children. Past studies suggest that children are relatively accurate in their observations of their parents’ work experiences (e.g., Barling et al., 1998). This is because children learn about their parents’ work directly—through verbal communication with their parents—and indirectly—through observation of their parents’ moods and behaviors (Galinsky, 1999). Thus, insofar as parents’ work experiences spillover to the family domain, we expect youth to form perceptions about their parents’ work experiences. Indeed, extant studies suggest that children are able to perceive parental job insecurity relatively accurately, through both direct and indirect means (e.g., Barling et al., 1998; Barling & Mendelson, 1999). The preceding discussion thus leads to the following hypotheses: Hypothesis 2a. Paternal job insecurity is positively associated with paternal job insecurity as perceived by their children. Hypothesis 2b. Maternal job insecurity is positively associated with maternal job insecurity as perceived by their children. Insofar as spillover of job insecurity occurs to affect parenting behaviors and perceived parental job insecurity, these could have an effect on children’s development. We focus on the effects of parenting behaviors and perceived parental job insecurity on the further shaping of the self-efficacy levels of youth who are poised to make the transition from school to work. 1.3. Authoritarian parenting behaviors, perceived parental job insecurity and youth’s self-efficacy Youth are at a particularly vulnerable stage in their lives as they are on the verge of entering adulthood, where new experiences are encountered, and attitudes and beliefs further crystallized. Faced with so many uncertainties, youth may truly need their parents’ support and encouragement. Insofar as non-authoritarian parenting behaviors enhance children’s efficacy beliefs by encouraging them to try out new experiences (Gecas & Schwalbe, 1986), authoritarian parenting behaviors, with their emphasis on exercising control and withholding support, may inhibit youth’s willingness to try out new experiences. Thus, their sense of enactive mastery may be inhibited and their efficacy beliefs, eroded. Hence, we put forth the following hypotheses: Hypothesis 3a. Paternal authoritarian parenting behaviors are negatively associated with youth’s self-efficacy. Hypothesis 3b. Maternal authoritarian parenting behaviors are negatively associated with youth’s self-efficacy. Youth who witness their parents losing their jobs, or experiencing disruptions in their employment status despite their parents’ best efforts, may be more inclined to believe that little could be done to avert the situation. This, in turn, may detract from youth a sense of mastery over their environment and erode their self-efficacy. Indeed, existing research suggests that parental job insecurity affects children’s cognitive difficulties and detracts from the children what is required for optimal performance (Barling et al., 1999). In line with the above arguments, therefore, we hypothesized that: Hypothesis 4a. Perceived paternal job insecurity is negatively associated with youth’s self-efficacy. Hypothesis 4b. Perceived maternal job insecurity is negatively associated with youth’s self-efficacy. 1.4. Youth’s self-efficacy and their work attitudes To the extent that efficacious youth perceive that they are able to achieve good performance at work and consequently yield valued outcomes, this may generate in them a greater interest in the work performed. This serves to motivate them further, thus reinforcing their work motivation and work involvement. Thus, we posit that: Hypothesis 5. Youth’s self-efficacy is positively associated with their work attitudes.