Understanding the (lack of) utilization of work-family practices: a multilevel perspective

Abstract

Purpose

Many employees do not use work-family practices to their full extent, even when they are in need of them. Drawing on the concept of psychological safety the authors propose a new construct: psychological accessibility– employees' sense of embracing the benefits of work-family practices without experiencing a fear of using them. The authors argue that the psychological accessibility of work-family practices could explain the variations in the utilization of work-family practices among employees with similar levels of family needs. Furthermore, the authors propose multilevel contextual factors that could affect the psychological accessibility of work-family practices.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors develop a theoretical multilevel framework for work-family practices that places psychological accessibility at its core and addresses accessibility of work-family practices from a macro level that includes institutions and the different attributes of the national culture, a meso level that includes work time norms in organizations, and a micro level, that includes the social context at the team level in organizations.

Findings

As part of the conceptual development the authors offer 10 propositions.

Originality/value

The authors' multilevel model of psychological accessibility could explain the variations in the utilization of work-family practices across different national, organizational and group contexts. This paper refocuses scholarly attention to the psychological antecedents of the utilization of work-family practices. The authors offer some practical recommendations to make the utilization of work-family practices a psychologically safe activity.

Citation

Lee, Y. and Kramer, A. (2022), "Understanding the (lack of) utilization of work-family practices: a multilevel perspective", Cross Cultural & Strategic Management, Vol. 29 No. 4, pp. 899-918. https://doi.org/10.1108/CCSM-05-2021-0081