The relationship between work-family conflict and work-related outcomes: evidence from China’s new-generation employees

Existing studies have tried to depict the intriguing features of the work-family conflicts among Chinese employees, but very little has been done to explore the extent of such conflicts for China’s new-generation employees who were born after 1980, and how this is linked with their level of work engagement and turnover. Drawing on a sample of 266 young employees in China, this study examines the relationships between the degree of work-family conflict (WFC) for China’s new-generation employees and their work engagement and turnover intention. Based on the stressor-strain-outcomes framework, the paper makes effort to address this important research gap. The regression analysis results revalidate the dynamic ‘WFC-work engagement-turnover intention’ construct and shows that work engagement can be an effective mediator. Our finding challenges the conventional gendered discourse of WFC for Chinese employees, but it can by no means signify the arrival of a gender equality era