work life balance systematic literature review

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International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy

ISSN : 0144-333X

Article publication date: 16 November 2021

Issue publication date: 23 September 2022

The purpose of this paper is to provide a clear view of current dynamics and research diversification of extant literature in the field of work-life balance (WLB). This paper provides a systematic and critical analysis of WLB literature using bibliometric analysis.

Design/methodology/approach

Scopus database has been used for carrying out this review that is based on 945 research papers published from 1998 to 2020. The prominence of the research is assessed by studying the publication trend, sample statistics, theoretical foundation, the highly cited research articles and journals, most commonly used keywords, research themes of top four recognized clusters, sub-themes within each cluster and thematic overview of WLB corpus formed on the premise of bibliographic coupling. Additionally, content analysis of recently published papers revealed emerging research patterns and potential gaps.

Major findings indicate that the research area consists of four established and emerging research themes based on clusters formed as (1) flexible work arrangements, (2) gender differences in WLB, (3) work–life interface and its related concepts, and (4) WLB policies and practices. Emerging themes identified through content analysis of recent articles include gender discrepancy, the impact of different forms of contextual (situational) factors and organizational culture.

Originality/value

This research paper is the first of its kind on the subject of WLB as it provides multifariousness of study fields within the WLB corpus by using varied bibliographic mapping approaches. It also suggests viable avenues for future research.

• Work–life balance
• Systematic literature review
• Bibliometric analysis

Acknowledgements

The authors express their sincere thanks to the editor of IJSSP, Professor Colin Williams, and the three anonymous reviewers for extending their timely support, and insightful suggestions to strengthen the content of the article.

Rashmi, K. and Kataria, A. (2022), "Work–life balance: a systematic literature review and bibliometric analysis", International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy , Vol. 42 No. 11/12, pp. 1028-1065. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSSP-06-2021-0145

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Work–life balance: a systematic literature review and bibliometric analysis

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide a clear view of current dynamics and research diversification of extant literature in the field of work-life balance (WLB). This paper provides a systematic and critical analysis of WLB literature using bibliometric analysis.Design/methodology/approach Scopus database has been used for carrying out this review that is based on 945 research papers published from 1998 to 2020. The prominence of the research is assessed by studying the publication trend, sample statistics, theoretical foundation, the highly cited research articles and journals, most commonly used keywords, research themes of top four recognized clusters, sub-themes within each cluster and thematic overview of WLB corpus formed on the premise of bibliographic coupling. Additionally, content analysis of recently published papers revealed emerging research patterns and potential gaps.Findings Major findings indicate that the research area consists of four established and emerging research themes based on clusters formed as (1) flexible work arrangements, (2) gender differences in WLB, (3) work–life interface and its related concepts, and (4) WLB policies and practices. Emerging themes identified through content analysis of recent articles include gender discrepancy, the impact of different forms of contextual (situational) factors and organizational culture.Originality/value This research paper is the first of its kind on the subject of WLB as it provides multifariousness of study fields within the WLB corpus by using varied bibliographic mapping approaches. It also suggests viable avenues for future research.

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Work-Life Balance:A Systematic Literature Review

Posted: 15 Sep 2023

Date Written: 2017

Work life balance has gained popularity as a working concept in recent years. Breaking the walls against pre explained framework of globalisation, ageing demography and quickly changing technology, work life balance has become the issue of concern in developed countries. From 1960’s, the term has changed its essence and evolved from various terms like work and family roles, work–family stress, work–family conûict or interference, work–family compensation, work–family segmentation, work–family expansion and, finally to work–family balance. This last concept refers to practice an individual tries to follow in order to have a control over how, where and when they work. Change in economy and today’s competitive environment is directly influencing individual’s lifestyle and making it more demanding. Therefore, working hands desires for an appropriate balance between their work and life. This issue is now globally recognised and hence understanding of the same is required at individual level.

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Content area

1. Introduction

Work is an integral part of one’s professional identity, but balancing it with the non-work activities can be difficult. The maintenance of balance between one’s work and varied facets of life has become a source of growing public concern in recent years, as more employees recognize the need for what is now commonly known as “work–life balance.” The discourse on work–life balance (WLB) commenced in the 1990s (Lewis et al. , 2007), and since then, it has witnessed profound changes in terms of social, demographic and workplace advancements. These advancements have been made in response to (1) profound changes in the labor market, (2) modification of gender roles, (3) more contribution of women in the labor force, (4) augmented prevalence of dual-earner couples, (5) single parents in the workforce, (6) longer working hours, (7) 24/7 communication technology obscuring the lines between work and non-work, and (8) increasing desire for the quality of life (Karkoulian et al. , 2016; Rashmi and Kataria, 2021; Shabir and Gani, 2020).

With all these changes co-occurring simultaneously, the responsibilities of individuals toward their work and personal life have increased manifold resulting in an upsurge in work–life “imbalance.” Consequently, for individuals in modern society, the notion of WLB has become an important issue (Akanji et al. , 2020b; Le et al. , 2020). They are now more concerned about balancing paid work with family and personal responsibilities to attain a holistic sense of well-being, such as family satisfaction, psychological health and overall life satisfaction (Le et al. , 2020). Similarly, in the last few years, the WLB phenomenon has become a source of concern for various organizations. WLB policies (WLBPs) and practices are being aligned and integrated with broader and strategic business goals. Organizations often look for multiple ways to increase positive perceptions of employees regarding their WLB. Furthermore, they also strive to offer a healthy work environment to enable their employees to achieve varied work-related outcomes such as job performance, organizational commitment, job satisfaction etc. (Haar et al. , 2018; Sirgy and Lee, 2017; Williams et al. , 2016).

More importantly, the unprecedented crisis of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has dramatically affected the notion of WLB for millions of individuals in manifolds. The abrupt shifts in...

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• DOI: 10.1108/ijssp-06-2021-0145
• Corpus ID: 244300294

Work–life balance: a systematic literature review and bibliometric analysis

• K. Rashmi , Aakanksha Kataria
• Published in International journal of… 16 November 2021

40 Citations

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