Work, Family and Employee Health

Evidence and initiatives suggests that everyday work and family life may shape human health. Unfortunately, this literature remains theoretically underdeveloped and methodologically speculative. This chapter is designed to equip researchers to design and implement effective translational research focused on work and family and employee health. The chapter begins by illustrating the complexity of “health” and prioritizing the value of studying discrete aspects of health. Then, the chapter identifies three primary ways of thinking about “successful integration of work and family,” and it delineates four discrete hypotheses linking successful integration of work and family to health outcomes. This section includes a review of empirical evidence relevant to each hypothesis. The chapter concludes by identifying a high priority agenda for catapulting work, family and health research forward.