The role of polychronicity and social networks in the work-family enrichment relationship

The current paper examines associations among measures of polychronicity, work-family enrichment (affect, development, and capital), and social networks (network support and network centrality in the advice network). Specifically, in a sample of 88 University employees and academics, we proposed and found a U-shaped relationship between polychronicity and work-family enrichment, such that individuals who are highly polychronic or highly monochronic report higher levels of work-family enrichment. Furthermore, this relationship was found to be moderated by network support, albeit no support was found for one work-family enrichment dimension (affect). Specifically, individuals with strong network support experience higher levels of work-family development and capital than individuals with weak network support. Finally, contrary to our expectation, network centrality moderated the relationship between polychronicity and the measures of work to family enrichment (affect, development, and capital) but in the opposite direction of proposed hypotheses. Specifically, central individuals who are low in polychronicity reported higher levels of work-family enrichment (all three dimensions) than central individuals who are high in polychronicity.