Work–family conflict, family well-being and organizational citizenship behavior: a moderated mediation model

Purpose This study aims to examine the consequences of work–family conflict and explore the mechanism by which it influences organizational citizenship behavior from the perspective of changes in and preservation of family well-being (emotional resources). Design/methodology/approach Work–family conflict has always been an important research topic in the field of organizational behavior; scholars have studied the relationship between it and organizational citizenship behavior from different perspectives. To better understand the mechanism of work–family conflict on organizational citizenship behavior, we use a longitudinal design and analyze the multi-stage matching data of 209 employees and their superiors from six cities in southern China. The authors construct a theoretical model based on the conservation of resources theory to explore the mechanism by which work–family conflict influences organizational citizenship behavior when taking employees’ family well-being as a mediator and work–family segmentation preference as the boundary condition. Findings Work–family conflict has a significant negative effect on family well-being and this effect is moderated by work–home segmentation preferences. Work–family conflict also has a significant indirect effect on organizational citizenship behavior through family well-being and this indirect effect is enhanced by an increase in the level of preference for work–home segmentation. Originality/value This study enriches our knowledge of the moderating variables in the study of work–family relationships from the perspective of individual personality traits. It also provides a new perspective for the study of such relationships in the context of Chinese family culture.