Is Multitasking a Crossover Stressor? The Spillover and Crossover Dynamics of Spousal Work-family Multitasking and Its Link to Psychological Distress

Abstract

Research has well-established the spillover effects of work-family conflict on health along with its crossover effects on other family members. However, no study to my knowledge has examined the crossover effects of spousal work-family multitasking on their partner’s mental health. This study seeks to advance research by documenting the relationship between perceptions of spousal work-family multitasking and the respondents’ psychological distress along with the intervening mechanisms that explain this pattern. Drawing on five waves of panel data from the Canadian Work, Stress, and Health Study (2011–2019, n = 2,147 respondents), the results reveal that when respondents perceive their spouse to engage in work-family multitasking very often, the respondents report elevated levels of distress. The association between spousal work-family multitasking and respondents’ distress is explained by perceptions of spousal work-to-family conflict and respondents’ family-to-work conflict. The implications of these results are discussed in light of crossover stress and role theory, the stress process model, and work-family boundary theories.