Has it been affect all along? A test of work-to-family and family-to-work models of conflict, enrichment, and satisfaction

Adopting a dispositional approach, we develop an affective perspective of work and family. Results, based on a diverse international sample of 187 employees, revealed that dispositional affect was significantly related to perceptions of work and family conflict, enrichment, and satisfaction. Specifically, negative affect accounted for 29–38% of the variance in work–family conflict, positive affect accounted for 24% of the variance in work-family enrichment, and our work-to-family and family-to-work models accounted for 29% and 39% of the variance in family and job satisfaction, respectively. Further, results indicated that work-family conflict and enrichment did not mediate affect-satisfaction relationships, suggesting dispositional affect is a driving force behind perceptions of work and family conflict, enrichment, and satisfaction. Implications for addressing the nature of work and family are discussed.