Social support and work-family conflict amongst low-income workers in South Africa: the relationship between social support and work-family conflict amongst low-income workers in South Africa
| dc.contributor.advisor | Bagraim, Jeffrey | |
| dc.contributor.author | Walters, Alexandra | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2026-01-29T13:00:28Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2026-01-29T13:00:28Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2025 | |
| dc.date.updated | 2026-01-29T12:59:07Z | |
| dc.description.abstract | Although most workers are challenged by competing work and family demands, lowincome workers are under-represented in work-family research. Work-family conflict (WFC) dynamics differ for low-income workers, who generally differ in access and resources available to higher-wage workers inside and outside of the workplace. Little is known about the support resources low-income workers draw on to manage WFC. Without formal organisational support, low-income workers tend to rely on interpersonal relationships in the workplace, family and community; the latter have attracted little research attention. The prevailing understanding, rooted in resource-based stress theory, is that support has a direct ameliorative effect on WFC. This study investigates the direct and interactive predictive effect of collegial, organisational, family, and community support on the WFC of low-income workers. It also examines how organisational support for family mediates the effect of supervisor support on WFC. Data was collected using a quantitative, descriptive, cross-sectional research design using self-report questionnaires. Participants were front-line, low-income workers in cleaning, catering, and security functions employed across multiple sites at a large outsourcing company (N= 339). The study aims to gain a deeper understanding of the WFC experiences of low-income workers, a group that has been underrepresented in research. By focusing on this demographic within a specific organisational context in South Africa, the study aims to uncover the unique challenges front-line, low-income employees face in balancing work and family responsibilities. The differential experiences of support among low-income workers highlights the need to understand the effect and interaction of different sources of support. Research results indicate that collegial support has a significant negative relationship with work-to-family and family-to-work conflict, while organisational support for family had a significant negative relationship with family-to-work conflict and not work-to-family conflict. However, community and family support were not seen to have a significant relationship with WFC. The results on the mediating effect of organisational support for the family were not significant. The implications for these findings are discussed. | |
| dc.identifier.apacitation | Walters, A. (2025). <i>Social support and work-family conflict amongst low-income workers in South Africa: the relationship between social support and work-family conflict amongst low-income workers in South Africa</i>. (). University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Commerce ,Organisational Psychology. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/11427/42755 | en_ZA |
| dc.identifier.chicagocitation | Walters, Alexandra. <i>"Social support and work-family conflict amongst low-income workers in South Africa: the relationship between social support and work-family conflict amongst low-income workers in South Africa."</i> ., University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Commerce ,Organisational Psychology, 2025. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/42755 | en_ZA |
| dc.identifier.citation | Walters, A. 2025. Social support and work-family conflict amongst low-income workers in South Africa: the relationship between social support and work-family conflict amongst low-income workers in South Africa. . University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Commerce ,Organisational Psychology. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/42755 | en_ZA |
| dc.identifier.ris | TY - Thesis / Dissertation AU - Walters, Alexandra AB - Although most workers are challenged by competing work and family demands, lowincome workers are under-represented in work-family research. Work-family conflict (WFC) dynamics differ for low-income workers, who generally differ in access and resources available to higher-wage workers inside and outside of the workplace. Little is known about the support resources low-income workers draw on to manage WFC. Without formal organisational support, low-income workers tend to rely on interpersonal relationships in the workplace, family and community; the latter have attracted little research attention. The prevailing understanding, rooted in resource-based stress theory, is that support has a direct ameliorative effect on WFC. This study investigates the direct and interactive predictive effect of collegial, organisational, family, and community support on the WFC of low-income workers. It also examines how organisational support for family mediates the effect of supervisor support on WFC. Data was collected using a quantitative, descriptive, cross-sectional research design using self-report questionnaires. Participants were front-line, low-income workers in cleaning, catering, and security functions employed across multiple sites at a large outsourcing company (N= 339). The study aims to gain a deeper understanding of the WFC experiences of low-income workers, a group that has been underrepresented in research. By focusing on this demographic within a specific organisational context in South Africa, the study aims to uncover the unique challenges front-line, low-income employees face in balancing work and family responsibilities. The differential experiences of support among low-income workers highlights the need to understand the effect and interaction of different sources of support. Research results indicate that collegial support has a significant negative relationship with work-to-family and family-to-work conflict, while organisational support for family had a significant negative relationship with family-to-work conflict and not work-to-family conflict. However, community and family support were not seen to have a significant relationship with WFC. The results on the mediating effect of organisational support for the family were not significant. The implications for these findings are discussed. DA - 2025 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town KW - work-family conflict KW - family-to-work conflict KW - work-to-family conflict KW - social support KW - supervisor support KW - coworker support KW - organisational support KW - community support KW - family support KW - low-income worker LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2025 T1 - Social support and work-family conflict amongst low-income workers in South Africa: the relationship between social support and work-family conflict amongst low-income workers in South Africa TI - Social support and work-family conflict amongst low-income workers in South Africa: the relationship between social support and work-family conflict amongst low-income workers in South Africa UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/42755 ER - | en_ZA |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/11427/42755 | |
| dc.identifier.vancouvercitation | Walters A. Social support and work-family conflict amongst low-income workers in South Africa: the relationship between social support and work-family conflict amongst low-income workers in South Africa. []. University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Commerce ,Organisational Psychology, 2025 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/42755 | en_ZA |
| dc.language.iso | en | |
| dc.language.rfc3066 | eng | |
| dc.publisher.department | Organisational Psychology | |
| dc.publisher.faculty | Faculty of Commerce | |
| dc.publisher.institution | University of Cape Town | |
| dc.subject | work-family conflict | |
| dc.subject | family-to-work conflict | |
| dc.subject | work-to-family conflict | |
| dc.subject | social support | |
| dc.subject | supervisor support | |
| dc.subject | coworker support | |
| dc.subject | organisational support | |
| dc.subject | community support | |
| dc.subject | family support | |
| dc.subject | low-income worker | |
| dc.title | Social support and work-family conflict amongst low-income workers in South Africa: the relationship between social support and work-family conflict amongst low-income workers in South Africa | |
| dc.type | Thesis / Dissertation | |
| dc.type.qualificationlevel | Masters | |
| dc.type.qualificationlevel | MSc |