The Spillover Effect: Assessing its Impact on Work-Life Balance Among Employees in National Referral Hospitals, Kampala
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.58425/jhrs.v4i1.348Keywords:
Spillover, affect, behavior, values, work-life balanceAbstract
Aim: This study investigated the impact of spillover, boundary management, social norms, and social support on the work-life balance (WLB) of employees at national referral hospitals in Kampala.
Methods: The study adopted a quantitative approach guided by spillover theory and using a correlational design. The sample was 352 randomly selected healthcare professionals from a population of 2,914. Data was collected through validated questionnaires (Cronbach’s alpha: 0.717–0.897; content validity: 0.900 - 0.913) between October 2024 and November 2024. The data was analyzed using multiple regression.
Results: The study found the Affect as the strongest predictor in the model indicating that for every unit increase in positive emotional attachment to work, EWLB improves by 1.136 units (standardized β = 0.886). This had a highly significant result (t = 16.211) confirming that employees’ emotional experiences substantially influence work-life balance. Behavioral factors exhibit a smaller but still significant positive relationship. Each unit increase in constructive work behaviors corresponded to a 0.229-unit improvement in balance (β = 0.183, t = 3.044), contributing about one-fifth as much as affective factors. The values component reveals that alignment between personal and organizational values enhances EWLB by 0.303 units per increase in value congruence (β = 0.277, t = 4.347), representing the second-strongest influence after affect and confirming values as a robust predictor.
Conclusion: The findings suggest that interventions targeting emotional well-being, value congruence, and constructive behaviors can significantly improve WLB among Ugandan healthcare workers.
Recommendation: Policymakers, theorists, and practitioners should adopt a holistic approach that goes beyond workload reduction, addressing affective, behavioral, and value-based drivers of work-life balance in high-stress environments.
References
Adisa, T. A., Mordi, C., & Osabutey, E. L. (2017). Exploring the implications of the influence of organizational culture on work-life balance practices: Evidence from Nigerian medical doctors. Personnel Review, 46(3), 454-473. https://doi.org/10.1108/PR-05-2015-0138
Bakker, A. B., & Demerouti, E. (2013). The spillover-crossover model. Stress and Health, 29(3), 141-152. https://doi.org/10.1002/smi.2466
Clark, S. C. (2000). Work/family border theory: A new theory of work/family balance. Human Relations, 53(6), 747-770. https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726700536001
Dagget, T., Molla, A., & Belachew, T. (2016). Job-related stress among nurses working in Jimma Zone public hospitals, South West Ethiopia: A cross-sectional study. BMC Nursing, 15(1), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12912-016-0128-8
Demerouti, E., Bakker, A. B., & Voydanoff, P. (2012). Negative spillover in healthcare: How work-family conflict affects nurses' well-being. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 17(1), 129-138. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0025279
Garg, P., & Rastogi, R. (2009). Job characteristics, work attitudes and behaviors in a non-western context. Journal of Management Development, 28(5), 457-465. https://doi.org/10.1108/02621710910955985
Grzywacz, J. G., & Marks, N. F. (2000). Reconceptualizing the work-family interface: An ecological perspective on the correlates of positive and negative spillover between work and family. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 5(1), 111-126. https://doi.org/10.1037/1076-8998.5.1.111
Haar, J. M., Russo, M., Suñe, A., & Ollier-Malaterre, A. (2014). Outcomes of work-life balance on job satisfaction, life satisfaction and mental health: A study across seven cultures. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 85(3), 361-373. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2014.08.010
Izdebski, Z., Kozakiewicz, A., Białorudzki, M., Dec-Pietrowska, J., & Mazur, J. (2023). Occupational burnout in healthcare workers, stress and other symptoms of work overload during the COVID-19 pandemic in Poland. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20(3), 2428. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20032428
Kaiser, H. F. (1970). A second-generation Little Jiffy. Psychometrika, 35(4), 401-415. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02291817
Kokonya, D. A., Mburu, J. M., Kathuku, D. M., & Ndetei, D. M. (2014). Prevalence of burnout syndrome among medical staff at Kenyatta National Hospital, Nairobi. African Journal of Psychiatry, 17(1), 1-6. https://doi.org/10.4172/1994-8220.1000105
Lee-Peng, N., Kuar, L. S., & Cheng, W. H. (2016). Influence of work-family conflict and work-family positive spillover on healthcare professionals' job satisfaction. Business Management Dynamics, 5(11), 1-12.
Marques, V. C., & Berry, G. R. (2021). Enhancing work-life balance using a resilience framework. Business and Society Review, 126(3), 263-281. https://doi.org/10.1111/basr.12236
Mbatudde, M., Musisi, S., Nalwadda, C. K., & Wamala, R. (2023). Job stress and satisfaction among Ugandan healthcare workers in national referral hospitals. BMC Health Services Research, 23(1), 245. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-023-09248-3
Mulegi, T. (2022). Healthcare worker migration from Uganda: Trends and policy implications. East African Journal of Health Sciences, 5(1), 45-60. https://doi.org/10.37284/eajhs.5.1.567
Ntege, R. (2015). Work-life balance challenges among Ugandan healthcare professionals. African Journal of Health Professions Education, 7(2), 112-118. https://doi.org/10.7196/AJHPE.2015.v7i2.453
Peng, C. (2017). Effect of negative work-to-family spillover on adolescent externalizing behavior via parental stress and parental involvement [Doctoral dissertation, Iowa State University]. Digital Repository @ Iowa State University. https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/etd/15461
Shabir, S., & Gani, A. (2020). Impact of work-life balance on organizational commitment of women health-care workers: Structural modeling approach. International Journal of Organizational Analysis, 28(4), 917-939. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOA-05-2019-1768
Straub, C., Beham, B., & Islam, G. (2019). The role of behavioral spillover in work-life balance: A longitudinal study. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 92(3), 671-689. https://doi.org/10.1111/joop.12245
Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS). (2015). Uganda National Health Workforce Study 2015: Key findings report. UBOS. https://www.ubos.org/wp-content/uploads/publications/05_2019UNHWS_2015_Key_Findings_Report.pdf
van der Heijden, B., Peeters, M. C., & van Veldhoven, M. J. (2022). The impact of social support at work on work-family balance: A time-lagged study among couples. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 134, 103692. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2022.103692
Yamane, T. (1967). Statistics: An introductory analysis (2nd ed.). Harper & Row.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Arinaitwe Enid, Samson Ntongai, Frankline Odayo
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
The authors retain the copyright and grant this journal right of first publication. This license allows other people to freely share and adapt the work but must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. They may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses them or their use.
