Does parental job insecurity matter money anxiety, money motives and motivation to work

DOES PARENTAL JOB INSECURITY MATTER? MONEY ANXIETY, MONEY MOTIVES AND MOTIVATION TO WORK SNG QING SI (B.B.A(Hons), NUS) A THESIS SUBMITTED FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCE (MANAGEMENT) DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENT AND ORGANISATION NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SINGAPORE 2005 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This thesis is a culmination of my masters studies at NUS. At times, the research and workload appeared to never end. In the midst of all this, so many people helped me pull through the academic and emotional challenges that I faced. First and foremost, I would like to thank Prof Vivien Lim, my supervisor. Thank you for all the time and effort you placed into this thesis. Without your enthusiasm in my work, your ingenious ideas and suggestions, this thesis would not have materialized. I am also grateful for everything you have imparted to me all these years. Thank you for your encouragement, sound advice and good teaching as mentor and advisor. My gratitude also extends to my friends for their moral support, and for being there for me despite their busy schedules. Special thanks goes to Huiling, Jingtian, Joyce, Lijuan, Peiqing, Weimin and Zhenyun for their encouragement and words of concern. Last, and most importantly, I wish to thank my Mum, who gives unconditional love, my Dad whose love is silent and my siblings for their care, love and support. To them, I dedicate this thesis. Qing Si November 2005 i TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS i TABLE OF CONTENTS ii SUMMARY vi LIST OF TABLES vii LIST OF FIGURES viii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 BACKGROUND OF STUDY 1 1.2 OBJECTIVES AND CONTRIBUTIONS OF STUDY 3 1.3 OUTLINE OF DISSERTATION 6 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK – SPILLOVER MECHANISM 8 2.2 JOB INSECURITY 10 2.2.1 Conceptualization of Job Insecurity 10 2.2.2 Spillover Effects of Job Insecurity 12 2.3 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK – CROSSOVER MECHANISM 14 2.4 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK – FAMILY AND ECONOMIC SOCIALIZATION 18 2.5 MONEY ANXIETY 19 2.6 MONEY MOTIVES 21 2.7 MOTIVATION TO WORK 21 2.8 SUMMARY 23 ii CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH MODEL AND HYPOTHESES 3.1 RESEARCH MODEL 24 3.2 RESEARCH HYPOTHESES 26 3.2.1 Spillover Effects of Parental Job Insecurity on Parental Money Anxiety 26 3.2.2 Crossover Effects of Parental Money Anxiety on Youth’s Money Anxiety 3.2.3 Youth’s Money Anxiety and Youth’s Negative Money Motives 28 30 3.2.4 Youth’s Negative Money Motives and Youth’s Intrinsic Motivation to Work 3.3 SUMMARY CHAPTER 4: 32 33 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 4.1 RESEARCH SAMPLE 34 4.2 PROCEDURES FOR DATA COLLECTION 34 4.2.1 Pretest 34 4.2.2 Questionnaire Surveys 35 INSTRUMENTATION 36 4.3.1 Parental Job Insecurity 36 4.3.2 Parental and Youth’s Money Anxiety 37 4.3.3 Youth’s Negative Money Motives 37 4.3.4 Youth’s Intrinsic Motivation to Work 38 4.3.5 Covariate 38 4.3 iii 4.4 4.5 PROCEDURES FOR DATA ANALYSES 39 4.4.1 Overview of Structural Equation Modeling 39 1. Structural Equation Modeling Procedure 40 2. Assessment of Model Fit 40 3. Assessment of Parameter Estimates 41 4.4.2 Nested Models Comparison 42 SUMMARY 43 CHAPTER 5: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 5.1 CHARACTERISTICS OF RESPONDENTS 44 5.2 DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS, RELIABILITIES AND 46 CORRELATIONS 5.3 HYPOTHESES TESTING 48 5.3.1 Results of Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) 48 5.3.2 Discussion 54 1. Parental Job Insecurity to Parental Money Anxiety 54 2. Parental Money Anxiety to Youth’s Money Anxiety 55 3. Youth’s Money Anxiety to Youth’s Negative Money Motives 55 4. Youth’s Negative Money Motives to Youth’s Intrinsic Motivation to Work 5.4 SUMMARY 56 56 iv CHAPTER 6: CONCLUSION 6.1 SUMMARY OF RESEARCH FINDINGS 57 6.2 STUDY CONTRIBUTIONS 58 6.3 THEORETICAL AND PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS 60 6.4 LIMITATIONS OF STUDY AND FUTURE RESEARCH 6.5 DIRECTIONS 62 CONCLUDING REMARKS 64 REFERENCES 66 APPENDIX v SUMMARY A structural model focusing on the spillover effect of parental job insecurity on money anxiety was developed and tested. The crossover effect of parental money anxiety on their children’s money anxiety, money motives and motivation to work was also examined. Data were collected from a sample of undergraduates and their parents. Results of structural equation modeling analyses supported a spillover effect of paternal job insecurity on paternal money anxiety. However, maternal job insecurity was not significantly associated with maternal money anxiety. Results also supported a crossover effect of parental money anxiety on youth’s money anxiety. In turn, youth’s money anxiety was significantly related to youth’s negative money motives. Finally, youth’s negative money motives were associated with their intrinsic motivation to work. Implications of our findings were discussed. Keywords: parental job insecurity, spillover mechanism, crossover mechanism, money attitudes, money anxiety vi LIST OF TABLES Page Table 5.1 Demographic Characteristics of Undergraduates 45 Table 5.2 Descriptive Statistics, Reliabilities and Correlations 47 Table 5.3 Fit Indices and Model Comparisons 50 Table 5.4 Covariate’s Relationships with Endogenous Factors 53 Table 6.1 Summary of Hypotheses Testing Results 57 vii LIST OF FIGURES Page Figure 3.1 Hypothesized Structural Equation Model 25 Figure 5.1 Final Structural Equation Model 52 viii CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1.1 BACKGROUND OF STUDY In recent years, economic restructurings, downsizings, mergers, takeovers and acquisitions have immensely changed the organizational landscape, resulting in large scale job losses for workers around the world. In the United States, there were 9,850 mass layoff events during the first half of 2003. This figure was the highest for any January-June period since such data became available in 1996 (United States Department of Labor, 2003). As well, Singapore has not been spared, it registered an unemployment rate of 5.3% in June 2004, doubling the 2.6% a decade ago (Manpower Research & Statistics Department, MOM, 2005). Other dramatic changes over the past decades, such as economic recessions, new information technology and an accelerated global competition have affected the nature of work and organization (Hellgren, Sverke & Isaksson, 1999). Inevitably, these organizational changes have created a situation whereby secure employment has changed into one which is more precarious, thus generating an increased feeling of job insecurity among employees. Typically defined as “perceived powerlessness to maintain desired continuity in a threatened job situation” (Greenhalgh & Rosenblatt, 1984: p. 438), job insecurity is a stressful experience for employees and has received considerable attention from various researchers (e.g. Hellgren & Sverke, 2003; Lim, 1996; 1997). Indeed, research on stress suggests that the psychological anticipation of the potential risk of losing one’s job can be a more intense source of anxiety than the event of job loss itself (Latack & Dozier, 1986). This is because stress which arises from job insecurity is different from that arising from unemployment. More 1 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION specifically, stress from unemployment will lead the unemployed and their families to make certain decisions and reorganize their lives accordingly (e.g., file for unemployment, find alternative employment), such that stressors from their previous job are unlikely to affect their current situation. However, stress from job insecurity may occur for an indefinite period and affect the employees’ current situation (Wilson, Larson & Stone, 1993). In line with this reasoning, job insecurity is likely to yield more severe consequences for the individuals than actual job loss (Latack & Dozier, 1986). Given that perceived job insecurity is likely to affect more employees than unemployment (Wilson et al., 1993), it becomes even more imperative to understand the consequences of job insecurity. Extant research suggests that perceived job insecurity is negatively associated with employees’ well-being and work-related attitudes (e.g., Ashford, Lee & Bobko, 1989; Hellgren et al., 1999; Lim, 1996; Rosenblatt & Ruvio, 1996). Greenhalgh and Rosenblatt (1984) noted that employees will react to job insecurity, and that their reactions have severe consequences for organizational effectiveness. Indeed, empirical studies have found that job insecurity can result in job dissatisfaction and decreased organizational commitment (e.g., Ashford et al., 1989; Davy, Kinicki & Scheck, 1997; Lim, 1996; Rosenblatt & Ruvio, 1996). As well, job insecurity was found to be related to reduced work performance (e.g., Abramis, 1994; Rosenblatt & Ruvio, 1996), decreased trust in organizations (e.g., Ashford et al., 1989), and turnover intentions (e.g., Ashford et al., 1989; Dekker & Schaufeli, 1995; Hellgren et al., 1999). These outcomes can be harmful to both the individual and the organization. 2 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION More recently, another stream of research has emerged. Led by Barling and his associates (e.g., Barling, Dupre & Hepburn, 1998; Barling & Mendelson, 1999; Barling, Zacharatos & Hepburn, 1999; Stewart & Barling, 1996), these studies suggest that the effects of job insecurity go beyond the insecure employee. Indeed, Stewart and Barling found that children of job insecure individuals experienced social and school-related problems. Moreover, scholars have suggested that children may view the world of work with more cynicism and less trust when they perceive that their parents are experiencing job insecurity. This has an adverse impact on their beliefs about work in general and their own motivation to work harder (Barling & Sorensen, 1997). This is because when children see their parents experiencing job insecurity despite their parents’ best efforts, these children are unlikely to believe that hard work is inherently good or that hard work can protect one’s job (Barling et al., 1998). 1.2 OBJECTIVES AND CONTRIBUTIONS OF STUDY Given that job insecurity will be increasingly experienced at the workplace, its impact on the job insecure individuals’ families cannot be underestimated (Westman, Etzion & Danon, 2001). Extant studies, however, have not examined the effects of employees’ perceived job insecurity on their money beliefs as well as their children’s1 money beliefs and intrinsic motivation to work. As parents often serve as the main source of money for their children, parental work experiences and money pressures can have significant impact on their children’s attitudes toward money, work and the economic world; yet, little is known about how job insecurity affects the employees’ 1 The youth in our study ranged from ages 18-22. In light of their ages, the term “children” as used in this dissertation will refer to the offsprings of the job incumbents. 3 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION money anxiety and their children’s money beliefs and intrinsic motivation to work. Money anxiety refers to the extent to which people worry about money and includes unpleasant feelings of tension and apprehension toward money (Lim & Teo, 1997; Zeidner, 1994). Given the paucity of research in this area, our study has three main objectives. First, it fills the gap in the job insecurity literature by developing and testing a model that clarifies the processes through which parental work experience and money anxiety affect their children’s beliefs about money and work. This model draws upon research on the spillover and crossover mechanisms (e.g., Almeida, Wethington & Chandler, 1999; Bolger, DeLongis, Kessler & Wethington, 1989) to explain the impact of parental job insecurity on their money anxiety and their children’s money beliefs, and intrinsic motivation to work. Spillover has been defined as the contagion of stress in the work domain which results in stress in the home domain -- and vice versa -- for the same individual (Bolger et al., 1989). Crossover refers to the influence that stress experienced by the individual has on the stress experienced by a significant other or family members (Westman, 2001). While the spillover and crossover mechanisms have received considerable attention in the literature on stress and work-family conflict, extant studies have not focused on the spillover effects of parental job insecurity on money anxiety; and crossover effects of parental money anxiety on youth’s money beliefs per se. 4 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION Second, our study builds upon and extends previous theoretical efforts on job insecurity by systematically linking the job insecurity literature with research on money and economic socialization to provide insights into the dynamics underlying the relationships among parental job insecurity, money anxiety, children’s money beliefs and motivation to work. In doing so, this research extends and contributes to previous research on the effects of parents’ work experiences and union experiences on their children (e.g., Barling, Kelloway & Bremermann, 1991), by demonstrating that family socialization plays an important role in the formation of children’s attitudes toward money and work. Research suggests that children learn about parental work experiences through verbal communication and observation of their parents (Galinsky, 1999). In addition, research on money and economic socialization explained that young people’s acquisition and acceptance of economic concepts are influenced by socialization agents in their social environment; parents constitute a primary socialization agent in this environment (Conger, Rueter & Conger, 2000; Furnham & Stacey, 1991). Drawing from theoretical arguments and empirical evidence provided by research on socialization, we predict that parental money anxiety arising from job insecurity can crossover to affect their children. Finally, our study contributes to the literature on money and youth’s work attitudes by examining the impact of youth’s money anxiety on their negative money motives, defined as their motives for obtaining money for purpose of social comparison and overcoming self-doubt (Srivastava, Locke & Bartol, 2001). As well, we predict that youth’s negative money motives have impact on the extent to which they feel positive about doing good work (i.e., intrinsic motivation to work) (Yamauchi, Lynn & Rendell, 1994). 5 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION Scholars have noted that youth’s pre-employment acquisition of work beliefs, attitudes and economic constructs help predict behaviors in organizations and their attitudes towards unions (e.g., Barling 1990; Barling et al., 1991; Kelloway, Barling & Agar, 1996; Kelloway & Harvey, 1999; Kelloway & Watts, 1994). Hence, youth’s intrinsic motivation to work that is developed prior to entering the workforce may serve as a basis for their future work development. In line with this, we argue that the practical and theoretical importance of our study are especially strong, in a period where organizational changes and restructurings have threatened job insecurity, affecting the insecure employees and their families. Specifically, examining the relationships among youth’s money anxiety, negative money motives and intrinsic motivation to work entail both theoretical and practical significance in that it helps provide scholars and practitioners with an understanding of how parental work experience and money anxiety may affect youth’s beliefs about money and work. This can help significantly in the design and implementation of organizational interventions to assist employees and their families in dealing with the spillover effects of job insecurity. 1.3 OUTLINE OF DISSERTATION This dissertation is organized into six chapters. This introductory chapter provides the background of the study, its objectives and potential contributions. A review of the theoretical framework as well as existing research on the key variables of this study is discussed in Chapter Two. These are integrated in the research model and research hypotheses in Chapter Three. 6 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION Procedures for data collection, various constructs and statistical techniques utilized in this study are described in Chapter Four. Results from statistical procedures and a discussion of the findings are presented in Chapter Five. In the concluding chapter, the research findings are summarized and the contributions and implications from these findings are discussed. In addition, the limitations of the study and some directions for future research are presented. 7 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW This chapter begins with a review of the literature on spillover mechanism. The construct of job insecurity and its spillover effects will be presented. Following this, we review the literature on crossover mechanism; and family and economic socialization. In the section that follows, a brief discussion of other variables in the model such as money anxiety, money motives and motivation to work will be presented. 2.1 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK – SPILLOVER MECHANISM Kanter (1977) noted that emotions generated at work could spill over to the home domain and affect family functioning. This phenomenon is referred to as spillover, or the extent to which participation in one domain (e.g., work) affects participation in another domain (e.g., family) for the same individual (Pleck, 1995). It is important to note that spillover is largely an intra-individual contagion process of stress or strain. The spillover theory was originally proposed as a way to understand the relation between work stress and various negative outcomes (Grunberg, Moore & Greenberg, 1998). As such, spillover has traditionally been operationalized as a positive correlation between subjective reactions to work and nonwork domains (Sumer & Knights, 2001), and can be characterized as the “similarity between a construct in the work domain and a distinct but related construct in the family domain” (Edwards & Rothbard, 2000, p. 180). Since its inception, the framework has served as a useful theoretical lens in linking work and family research (Pleck, 1995). 8 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW Research suggests that spillover typically occurs when there is a “direct transfer of mood, affect or behavior from one setting to another” (Almeida et al., 1999: p. 49). More generally, this theory now asserts that an employee’s work experiences can spill over into the home, and experiences at home can also affect one’s work (Caliguri, Hyland, Joshi & Bross, 1998). Although the literature has largely focused on the spillover of work experiences and outcomes to the family domain, recently, scholars noted that spillover from the family to work domain also occurs (Sumer & Knights, 2001). Research on spillover identified two main types of spillover, namely (i) negative spillover and (ii) positive spillover (Grzywacz, Almeida & McDonald, 2002). Negative spillover refers to various types of work-family conflict or interference (Grzywacz et al., 2002). The forms of negative spillover typically examined include stressors on the same day in multiple domains, and the transmission of attitudes or moods from one domain to another (Grzywacz et al., 2002). Positive spillover, on the other hand, refers to resource enhancement between work and family; and work-family success or balance (Grzywacz et al., 2002). Previous studies investigating both positive and negative mood spillovers from the work domain to the family domain noted that unpleasant moods tend to spillover much more than pleasant moods (e.g., Larson & Almeida, 1999; Williams & Alliger, 1994). This suggests that the effects of negative spillover are likely to be stronger than the effects of positive spillover. 9 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW Interestingly, previous research found as well, that negative forms of spillover from work to family are relatively independent from negative forms of spillover from family to work, suggesting that work to family conflict and family to work conflict are distinct aspects of the work-family interface (Grzywacz & Marks, 2000). Scholars explained that the boundaries between work and family are asymmetrically permeable, such that work is allowed to invade one’s family more than family life interfering with work (Frone, Russell & Cooper, 1992). In accord with this line of argument, we examined the negative spillover effects of perceived job insecurity in this study. 2.2 JOB INSECURITY 2.2.1 Conceptualization of Job Insecurity Extant studies have conceptualized job insecurity in various ways (e.g., Ashford et al., 1989; De Witte, 1999). Some scholars have adopted a global view, in which job insecurity is conceived as an overall concern about the continued existence of the job in the future (e.g., De Witte, 1999). Other studies, however, have viewed job insecurity as a multifaceted concept, comprising facets such as the perceived threat to various job features, and the ability of the individual to counteract these threats (e.g., Ashford et al., 1989; Rosenblatt & Ruvio, 1996). Generally, studies suggest that job insecurity is associated with feelings of personal inefficiency and incapacity to maintain continuity in a situation where one’s actual role or job position is threatened (Greenhalgh & Rosenblatt, 1984). Job insecurity often stems from an undesired change, which places the continuity and security of employment at risk (Hartley, Jacoson, Klandermans & Van Vuuren, 1991). 10 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW In the present study, we utilized the conceptualization and measure of perceived job insecurity developed by Kuhnert and Vance (1992). Kuhnert and Vance’s (1992) concept of perceived job security consisted of two main dimensions. The first dimension, job permanence, measures “employees’ beliefs that they could keep their present jobs indefinitely”, while the second, employment security, assessed whether “employees believed that they could easily get comparable jobs elsewhere in the event of loss of their present jobs” (Kuhnert & Vance, 1992: p. 52). This conceptualization is utilized in the present study as it enables us to tap into not only employees’ job permanence, but also their employment security. The inclusion of the employment security dimension is important because employees are concerned not only about keeping their present jobs, but also the likelihood and ease of finding a comparable job. As well, this study recognized the need for the investigation of both objective and subjective aspects of job insecurity. Extant empirical work has raised the issue of whether job insecurity should be considered as an objective or subjective phenomenon (e.g., Bussing, 1999; Klandermans & Van Vuuren, 1999). While scholars have noted that job insecurity can be conceptualized as an objective experience (e.g., Bussing, 1999), associated with organizational decline/downsizing, there is evidence to suggest that the subjective perception of job insecurity is more important since the way employees interpret their environment will influence how they react to it (Naswall & De Witte, 2003). It is important to note that perceptions of job insecurity are relevant even in times of economic security. Hence, the experience of perceived job insecurity could exist regardless of whether an objective threat exists (Rosenblatt & Ruvio, 1996). Since employees often develop cognitive appraisals of 11 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW workplace uncertainties (e.g., Hellgren et al., 1999), it would be more insightful to focus on the subjective experience of job insecurity. 2.2.2 Spillover Effects of Job Insecurity The present study focused on the negative spillover effects of perceived job insecurity. Perceived job insecurity and the anxiety it causes are expected to spillover and affect marital and family life because employees who experience anxiety and depression at work tend to have increased difficulty in fulfilling their roles as spouses and parents in the family (Larson, Wilson & Beley, 1994). Barling and Macewen (1992) noted that the effect of work experiences on the employee may not stop after work, but continue to affect the employee at home, and in turn affect other family members. That is, employees’ work experiences can spillover to the home domain and affect their behaviors and interactions with family members. Indeed, research has established a negative relationship between work stressors and marital functioning (Barling, 1990). Empirical studies have shown that experiences in the workplace and their emotional consequences for employees can spillover to affect couple interactions, affecting the marital relationship (e.g., Matthews, Conger & Wickrama, 1996; Repetti, 1989; Schulz, Cowan, Cowan & Brennan, 2004). For instance, men have been found to withdraw from marital interactions in response to heightened negative emotional arousal or difficulty in their workdays (e.g., Repetti, 1989; Schulz et al., 2004). As well, Matthews et al. (1996) found that work-related psychological distress influenced the perception of marital quality through increased hostility and decreased warmth and supportiveness in marital interactions. 12 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW Previous research provided rather compelling evidence that the effects of job insecurity do have spillover effects for the insecure employees. Based on a nationwide survey in the United States, job insecurity has been found to predict family tension (e.g., Butchell, Day, Hudson, Ladipo, Mankelow, Nolan, Reed, Wichert & Wilkinson, 1999). Extant studies suggest as well that stressors such as job insecurity, ambiguity and conflict exert significant indirect effects on three dimensions of marital functioning -- marital satisfaction, sexual satisfaction and psychological aggression -by decreasing the insecure individual’s concentration and elevating depression (e.g., Barling & MacEwen, 1992). Research has also shown that job insecurity is associated with increased marital tension (e.g., Hughes & Galinsky, 1994), and spillover to decrease marital satisfaction via job exhaustion and psychosomatic health (e.g., Mauno & Kinnunen, 1999). Research has also revealed that husband’s job insecurity affect his burnout, and in turn wife’s burnout (e.g., Westman et al., 2001). Taken together, existing research provides strong evidence attesting to the detrimental effects of job insecurity on marital functioning. More recently, Lim and Loo (2003) found that fathers who perceived job insecurity displayed more authoritarian parenting behaviors toward their children. This result is consistent with previous research which showed that work stress leads to irritability and hostility and undermines family interactions. Job insecure parents have been found to engage in more punishing and unresponsive parenting behaviors with their children (e.g., Almeida et al., 1999). This is because individuals who are emotionally and physically fatigued from work stress tend to be less sensitive, participative and supportive of their children (Repetti & Wood, 1997). Taken 13 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW together, these studies provide strong empirical support that job insecurity does spillover to influence insecure individuals’ behaviors toward their children. 2.3 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK – CROSSOVER MECHANISM The literature on work-family conflict refers to crossover effect as the influence that stress or strain experienced by the individual has on the stress or strain experienced by a significant other or family members (Westman, 2001). Whereas spillover is an intra-individual contagion process, crossover is a dyadic, interindividual transmission of stress or strain. The study of crossover is not limited only to the transmission of the same type of stress or strain between two partners, but may also apply to situations in which one experiences strain that is transmitted and creates another type of strain in the other person (Westman, Vinokur, Hamilton & Roziner, 2004). Westman and Vinokur (1998) specified three main underlying explanations for these effects of crossover. These underlying explanations include common stressors in a shared social environment for two partners, direct transmission of strain through empathic reactions, and indirect transmission through the interaction process between partners. The first proposed explanation underlying the crossover process is that the experience of common stressors in a shared social environment increases the strain in both partners (Westman & Vinokur, 1998). One such possible common stressor is stressful life events (e.g., Burke, Weir & Douwors, 1980; Westman & Etzion, 1995). Such common stressors impact the strain of both partners and the positive correlation detected between the strains of the two spouses appear as being due to a crossover 14 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW effect. As such, Westman and Vinokur (1998) noted that such common stressors that increase both partners’ strain need to be considered as a spurious case of crossover. However, it is important to note that common stressors may affect each spouse’s strain and can still cause crossover through the other two suggested mechanisms: empathic reactions and interaction between partners (Westman, Etzion & Horovitz, 2004). By contrast, the second explanation is that crossover occurs when there is direct transmission of strain from one partner to another through empathic reactions (Westman & Vinokur, 1998). This direct transmission occurs between two partners who are closely related and have high levels of empathy for one another (Hammer, Bauer & Grandey, 2003). Specifically, this explanation suggests that the strain of one partner creates in the other partner a sympathetic reaction which increases the other partner’s distress (Westman & Vinokur, 1998). Finally, the third process suggests that the crossover effect of stress or strain may be indirectly transmitted through the interaction exchange between partners (Westman & Vinokur, 1998). More specifically, this indirect crossover occurs when an increase in the strain of one partner triggers behaviors or interaction sequences with the other partner, e.g., social undermining behavior, and causes the recipient’s stress or strain level to increase (Westman, Etzion & Horovitz, 2004). That is, one’s strain results in an increase in the strain of another individual through the process of interactions between the two partners. 15 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW To date, extant research which utilize this mechanism has typically shown crossover effects of different forms of stress or strain from one spouse to another (e.g., Hammer, Allen & Grigsby, 1997; Westman & Etzion, 1995; Westman et al., 2001; Westman, Etzion & Horovitz, 2004). For instance, Westman and Etzion (1995) found that a person’s burnout affects his/her spouse’s burnout after controlling for his/her own job stress. They suggest that a possible process is that the spouse’s burnout becomes an additional source of stress to the individual and adds to his/her burnout. As well, more recent findings by Westman et al. (2001) revealed crossover of burnout from husbands to wives in a study based on married couples in an organization undergoing downsizing. Empirical research also suggests that work-family conflict can crossover from one spouse to another. Hammer et al. (1997) found that an individual’s own workfamily conflict significantly affected the spouse’s level of work-family conflict and vice versa. More recently, state anxiety was shown to crossover from unemployed partners to employed ones in a longitudinal study on working couples (e.g., Westman, Etzion & Horovitz, 2004). Besides the crossover process between spouses, research has also demonstrated the crossover of stress and strain between work group members in the workplace (e.g., Westman & Etzion, 1999). In one of the few studies to demonstrate the crossover of strain in the workplace, Westman and Etzion (1999) investigated the crossover effect among school principals and teachers. More specifically, the authors found a significant crossover of job-induced tension from principals to teachers and 16 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW vice versa. Importantly, they noted that the crossover effect found among couples in the family also exists in the workplace. Job insecurity has also been found to have crossover effects on the children of job insecure parents. Broman, Hamilton and Hoffman (1990) studied families of auto workers who were anticipating unemployment or had recently lost their jobs and found that these workers were more likely to physically hurt their children, resulting in increased levels of conflict, tension and stress in the household. Previous studies also found that children of job insecure parents were likely to report a higher risk of illness (e.g., Margolis & Farran, 1984), manifest social and school-related problems (e.g., Flanagan & Eccles, 1993; Stewart & Barling, 1996), and have poorer academic grades (e.g., Barling & Mendelson, 1999). Providing further support for this finding, a recent study showed that adolescents’ perceptions of negative spillover from parents’ work were connected to lessened autonomy granting and to increased conflicts between the parents and adolescents. In turn, this resulted in heightened experiences of depression in adolescents (Sallinen, Kinnunen & Ronka, 2004). Scholars noted that children routinely observe their parents’ reactions to their work. Watching their parents suffer from job insecurity is likely to lead children to believe that work is unfulfilling (Barling et al., 1998). Consequently, research has found that fathers’ job insecurity has indirect negative effects on children’s work beliefs and attitudes (e.g., Barling et al., 1998; Lim & Loo, 2003). Barling et al. (1998) cautioned that if these children’s work beliefs and attitudes are stable, there 17 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW may be large groups of young people entering the workforce with these preexisting negative work beliefs and attitudes. This suggests that parental job insecurity may have far-reaching consequences on our future workforce. 2.4 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK – FAMILY AND ECONOMIC SOCIALIZATION In the context of this study, we utilize research on family and economic socialization to explain the crossover mechanism of parental influences on their children. That is, family and economic socialization is the interpersonal exchange between parents and children which underlies the crossover process. Economic socialization refers to the acquisition of abstract knowledge about the economic world. Often, this process involves parental attempts to socialize their children about money matters (Kirkcaldy, Furnham & Martin, 2003). Research has established that the family, education system, other social institutions and the mass media serve as agents of economic socialization (e.g., Denhardt & Jefress, 1971; Gelles, 1995). In one of the most influential works on the family, Parsons (1955) noted that the family is expected to act as a central agent of economic socialization for most people, especially children. This is because children are most likely to gain their first insight into economic behavior from their interaction in a family situation (Denhardt & Jefress, 1971). In view of the importance of the family as an agent of economic socialization, research has typically focused on the use of pocket money or allowances to socialize children. Indeed, Furnham and Argyle (1998) explained that children gain insights into monetary and economic matters through pocket money or allowances given 18 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW either unconditionally or for some work. Thus, it is not surprising that research on children’s allowances as a mechanism of economic socialization within families is commonly examined in previous research (Mortimer, Dennehy, Lee & Finch, 1994). Research on economic socialization suggests that parents do impact youth’s money beliefs, such that their money beliefs were very similar. For instance, Flouri (1999) found that mother’s materialism directly predicted her child’s materialism and mother’s own values similarly influenced the development of her child’s materialist values (Kasser, Ryan, Zax & Sameroff, 1995). In addition, Marks (1997) showed that materialist values were influenced by parental socialization and were transmitted directly from parents. In sum, psychological research has demonstrated the importance of parental socialization and parenting on the economic concerns of children (Flouri, 2004), thus providing substantive evidence that parents may directly transmit money beliefs to their children. 2.5 MONEY ANXIETY The money belief that is of interest in the present study is money anxiety. This is defined as the extent to which people worry about money and is associated with feelings of tension and apprehension toward money (Lim & Teo, 1997; Zeidner, 1994). Individuals who report high levels of money anxiety tend to feel anxious or defensive when asked about their personal finances, and they frequently feel inferior to others who have more money than them (Lim & Teo, 1997). Extant research suggests that women were more likely to report high levels of money anxiety, believing that they have less control over their finances (e.g., Furnham, 1984). As well, women were found to underestimate their knowledge of financial matters 19 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW (e.g., Goldsmith, Goldsmith & Heaney, 1997). In the Western context, Stinoerock, Stern and Solomon (1991) showed that although women are becoming successful wage earners, they are still more anxious about money than men. However, in a study of Asian undergraduates, Lim and Teo (1997) explained that men perceived themselves as the primary breadwinner in the family. Thus, money issues were more salient to them. Consequently, men reported higher levels of money anxiety compared to women. Researchers have noted that individuals’ past experiences with money may influence their attitudes toward money. For example, Rabow and Rodriguez (1993) found that youth who experienced poverty were more likely to place greater importance on money upon reaching adulthood. In a similar vein, Lim and Teo (1997) found that individuals who had experienced a situation in which they desperately needed money tended to have greater money anxiety relative to individuals who had never experienced a situation in which they lack money. Finally, a recent study by Lim (2003) found that individuals with high levels of face concerns were more inclined towards experiencing anxiety over their financial status and standing. Face is defined as the evaluation of individuals based on self and external social judgments (Earley, 1997). Lim suggested that individuals with high levels of face concerns were more likely to view that their financial standing is used as a standard of evaluation by others. Consequently, the amount of money they possess affects the face that they are accorded by others. Individuals with high levels of face concerns tend to experience greater anxiety over their financial affairs. 20 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.6 MONEY MOTIVES Srivastava et al. (2001) recently identified three specific motives for obtaining money, namely positive motives, which reflect obtaining money to meet life necessities; freedom of action motives, which involve spending money the way one wants (i.e., blowing it on shopping, giving it to charity); and negative motives, which reflect the desire to obtain money to overcome self-doubt, and to feel superior in social comparison. Using a sample of business students, Srivastava and colleagues found that negative motives affect the negative relationship between money importance (relative importance of financial success compared to other goals in life) and subjective well-being. Specifically, negative motives had a detrimental effect on subjective well-being. This finding was replicated with a sample of entrepreneurs in the same study. In addition, this study showed that positive motives and freedom of action motives were not significantly related to subjective well-being, implying that these motives had no effect on one’s subjective well-being. 2.7 MOTIVATION TO WORK Employee motivation has been a topic of central importance for management because unmotivated employees are likely to exert little effort in their jobs, avoid the workplace, leave the organization and produce low quality work. On the other hand, employees who feel motivated towards their work are more likely to be productive and produce high quality work (Amabile, 1993). Theoretical and empirical research suggests that work motivation can be categorized into two distinct types: intrinsic motivation, which comes from the intrinsic value of the work itself; and extrinsic motivation, which comes from the desire to obtain some other outcomes apart from the work itself (Amabile, 1993). 21 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW Besides examining work motivation in adult samples, existing research has also investigated motivation to work in youth, plausibly because work attitudes that are developed prior to entering the workforce may serve as a basis for future work attitudes when youth eventually start working (Krau, 1989). Research suggests that children’s work beliefs are formed well before they embark on their first, full-time job (Barling et al., 1991). In the present study, we are interested in youth’s intrinsic motivation to work, which refers to their “commitment to high standards of quality at work and absence of expressed desire to shirk” (Stern, Stone, Hopkins & McMillion, 1990: p. 265). Specifically, youth who are intrinsically motivated should feel positively about doing good work. Previous studies have noted that there are gender differences with regards to youth’s work motivation. Specifically, females have been found to rate intrinsic rewards/work goals as more important and extrinsic rewards/work goals as less important than males (e.g., Hagstrom & Gamberale, 1995; McCall & Lawler, 1976), suggesting that the relationship between work attitudes and demographic characteristics exist even before adult employment. Based on a sample of high school students, Stern et al. (1990) also found that students who were senior and female expressed stronger motivation to do good work and less cynicism about work. Extant research on youth’s motivation to work suggests that socialization plays a pivotal role in the formation of work attitudes. Specifically, scholars have noted that children learn about the world of work by observing their parents (Barling & Sorensen, 1997). Empirical findings revealed that young people’s motivation to do good work is associated with their families’ achievement orientation, defined as their 22 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW families’ values towards work (e.g., Loughlin & Barling, 1998). Research has also shown that children’s understanding of work and employment are largely influenced by their parents’ employment and economic circumstances (e.g., Dickinson & Emler, 1992). Given that youth are influenced by parents’ work, Barling et al. (1998) found that parental experiences of layoffs and job insecurity significantly predicted late adolescents’ perceptions of parental job insecurity, which in turn, predicted their own work beliefs and work attitudes such as alienation and cynicism. As noted by Loughlin and Barling (2001), these findings have important practical implications, this is because when youth see their parents making great sacrifices for their work with no benefits, they may be less willing to make sacrifices for the sake of their jobs. Hence, a major challenge facing organizations would be how to attract, motivate and retain these young workers who because of their own family experiences, may or may not be motivated in the same way as their parents (Loughlin & Barling, 2001). 2.8 SUMMARY The preceding review has highlighted the main ideas prevalent in research on the spillover mechanism, crossover mechanism, family and economic socialization and the main variables in the study. In the following chapter, we will propose a model to test the relationships among parental job insecurity, money anxiety, youth’s negative money motives and intrinsic motivation to work. 23 CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH MODEL & HYPOTHESES Based on the conceptual background presented in the preceding chapter, a research model linking the main variables in the study is put forth. In the section that follows, several hypotheses linking the variables in this study will be presented. 3.1 RESEARCH MODEL The research model which guided the present research is shown in Figure 3.1. In developing the model, we drew on the spillover mechanism, crossover mechanism and literature on family and economic socialization to explain the various relationships. More specifically, parental job insecurity is examined as an antecedent of parental money anxiety in the model. In turn, we predict that parental money anxiety will influence youth’s money anxiety. As depicted in Figure 3.1, youth’s money anxiety is, in turn, hypothesized to affect their negative money motives. Finally, youth’s negative money motives are hypothesized to influence their intrinsic motivation to work. In addition, the effect of family income was controlled statistically throughout the model. 24 25 = Latent factors Job permanence Money anxiety Maternal Money Anxiety + Maternal Job Insecurity Employment security Paternal Money Anxiety Money anxiety + Job permanence Paternal Job Insecurity Employment security Figure 3.1: Hypothesized Structural Equation Model Youth’s Money Anxiety = Measured variables + + Money anxiety + Overcoming self-doubt Social comparison Youth’s Negative Money Motives _ Intrinsic motivation to work Youth’s Intrinsic Motivation to Work CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH MODEL AND HYPOTHESES 3.2 RESEARCH HYPOTHESES 3.2.1 Spillover Effects of Parental Job Insecurity on Parental Money Anxiety Increasing awareness on the inseparability of work and family domains has led researchers to develop the concept of spillover to explain the possible effects of work experiences on family functioning and vice-versa (e.g., Edwards & Rothbard, 2000; Williams & Alliger, 1994). The spillover model posits that individuals do not or cannot compartmentalize their lives, such that the negative characteristics of jobs create stressful emotional, mental and physical states within the employee which will also extend into nonwork life (Grunberg et al., 1998). Extant research has typically examined the spillover effects of moods, values, skills and behaviors between the work and family domains (Edwards & Rothbard, 2000). In addition, the spillover theory has been utilized in many studies on work-family conflict, marital and family functioning to explain how work experiences are carried over to the family domain and vice-versa (e.g., Almeida et al., 1999; Larson & Almeida, 1999). Interestingly, in their review of studies examining the transmission of emotions among family members, Larson and Almeida (1999) noted that negative, relative to positive, moods experienced by parents are more readily carried across to their children. In the present study, we will focus on the negative spillover effects of perceived job insecurity. Job insecurity has been found to be a work stressor that arouses much stress, strain and other negative feelings in individuals (e.g., Barling et al., 1998; Lim & Loo, 2003). Previous studies suggest that negative emotions arising from negative work experiences lead to social withdrawal and expressions of anger by individuals at home, generating hostile feelings which reduce marital and family functioning and well being (e.g., Larson & Almeida, 1999). Indeed, empirical evidence noted that the 26 CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH MODEL AND HYPOTHESES effects of perceived job insecurity are not confined to the work domain (e.g., Barling et al., 1998; Stewart & Barling, 1996). Job insecure fathers have been found to report stress and other negative emotions, which then spillover into the home domain, resulting in authoritarian parenting behaviors (Lim & Loo, 2003). The spillover effect of job insecurity that is of particular interest in this study pertains to the effect of employees’ perceived job insecurity on their money anxiety. As a result of the increasing permeability of work and nonwork boundaries, we can expect feelings about one’s job to spillover to affect one’s mood in the nonwork domain (Judge & Ilies, 2004). More specifically, we argue that job insecurity arising from work will spillover to affect the employee’s money anxiety. This is because job insecurity often generates considerable money pressures as individuals who experience job insecurity are concerned about the potential reduction or total loss of income. Research suggests that when individuals perceive financial pressures, they are likely to experience psychological distress in the form of financial worry, efficacy and depression (Mistry, Vandewater, Huston & McLoyd, 2002). As such, we would expect feelings of job insecurity to have a strong psychological impact on those affected because there is a risk of losing economic and other highly valued aspects of life (Ashford et al., 1989). Hence, in view that a secure income is considered one of the most basic family needs (Lewis & Cooper, 1999), and that work inevitably serves as a valuable source of income for employees, anxiety about money is likely to emerge as a prominent feature in the job insecure individuals’ lives. Thus, we would expect job insecure individuals to display a considerable level of money anxiety. 27 CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH MODEL AND HYPOTHESES Previous studies suggest that while the effects of perceived job insecurity can spillover to the family domain, men’s perceived job insecurity may be more contagious than women’s (e.g., Lewis & Copper, 1999; Lim & Loo, 2003). Indeed, Lim and Loo (2003) found that perceived job insecurity did have a differential spillover effect for fathers than for mothers. These authors noted that mothers who perceived job insecurity demonstrated less authoritarian parenting behaviors compared to fathers who perceived job insecurity. They explained that due to differences in gender socialization, fathers developed a stronger affinity for their work role, while mothers have a stronger affinity for their maternal role. Thus, the work role may be a salient part of fathers’ lives such that it is more difficult for them to make the daily role transition from employee to parent. Mothers, on the other hand, were better able to delineate the boundary between work and family domains and minimize the spillover of job insecurity to the home domain. In line with findings of previous research, we posited different hypotheses to examine the differential effects of job insecurity on money anxiety for fathers and mothers. Hypothesis 1a. Paternal job insecurity is positively associated with paternal money anxiety. Hypothesis 1b. Maternal job insecurity is positively associated with maternal money anxiety. 3.2.2 Crossover Effects of Parental Money Anxiety on Youth’s Money Anxiety The family is a major setting for socialization, and parents constitute the primary agents of socialization (Gelles, 1995). To the extent that parental job insecurity affects parental money anxiety, we argue that parental money anxiety has a 28 CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH MODEL AND HYPOTHESES crossover effect on children’s money anxiety through socialization and family interactions. This is because children are often sensitive to parents’ work-related emotions and have been found to feel strained by their parents’ tiredness and bad mood after work (Galinsky, 2000). Extant research suggests that children learn about their parents’ work experiences directly through verbal communication with their parents as well as indirectly through the observation of their parents’ moods and behaviors (e.g., Galinsky, 1999; Piotrkowski & Stark, 1987). Indeed, research noted that family socialization affects children’s attitudes toward unions. Children form their attitudes towards labor organizations when they see their parents involved in union activities and talking about unions (e.g., Barling et al., 1991) As well, research has found that the economic attitudes among children of various age groups and their parents were very much alike (e.g., Lyck, 1990), suggesting that parents do exert considerable influence on their children’s money beliefs. Especially when children still live with their parents, they will be subjected to visible parental behaviors which shape their preferences (Bandura, 1986). Indeed, psychological research continues to demonstrate the importance of parental socialization and parenting (Flouri, 2004), and scholars have provided compelling evidence that parental money beliefs and behaviors can, and do, have a major impact on young people (e.g., Flouri, 1999; Rendon & Kranz, 1992). In line with these findings, we argue that parental beliefs and attitudes toward money can crossover to affect youth through interactions within the family. When youth perceive their parents to be under some sort of money anxiety arising from a 29 CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH MODEL AND HYPOTHESES fear of losing their job, they may develop feelings of money insecurity and would be compelled to feel anxious about money matters. This is because parents will implicitly or explicitly, convey their money anxiety to their children through daily interactions and behaviors. As a result, children will learn about economic constructs and develop money anxiety through the experiences and emotions of their parents. Along this line of reasoning, we hypothesized that: Hypothesis 2a. Paternal money anxiety is positively associated with youth’s money anxiety. Hypothesis 2b. Maternal money anxiety is positively associated with youth’s money anxiety. 3.2.3 Youth’s Money Anxiety and Youth’s Negative Money Motives Youth who experienced anxiety about money are likely to place a greater emphasis on money matters relative to other aspects of their lives. For these youth, money may occupy a central position in their value system and influence their motives for wanting to obtain money. Several motives for obtaining money have been proposed in the existing literature. We focus on the motives that Srivastava et al. (2001) refer to as negative money motives -- defined as one’s motives for obtaining money for purpose of social comparison, overcoming self-doubt and seeking to acquire power over others -- because there are strong theoretical reasons and empirical evidence for expecting these motives to be related to youth’s money anxiety. From an empirical standpoint, Srivastava and colleagues found that negative money motives have the strongest predictive accuracy in explaining the relationship between money importance and subjective well-being, noting that it is not money 30 CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH MODEL AND HYPOTHESES importance, but negative money motives that are detrimental to one’s subjective wellbeing. At the theoretical level, arguments drawn from research on money seem to suggest that money motives, specifically, negative ones, have some theoretical linkages with money anxiety. Our reasoning is as follows. Research on money attitudes suggests that experiences of money anxiety often generate feelings of selfdoubt in individuals (Lim & Teo, 1997). The research stream on job loss and job insecurity explained, as well, that self-doubt arising from the inability to provide for the family is common among job insecure individuals (Broman, Hamilton & Hoffman, 2001). Consistent with the above arguments, we argue that parental money anxiety arising from job insecurity may be interpreted by youth as a sign of failure or inadequacy on the part of their parents to provide for the family. Hence, youth who observe their parents experiencing money anxiety, and who themselves experience money anxiety, may be compelled to be driven by negative motives for earning money, i.e., they will be more motivated to obtain money for the purpose of overcoming feelings of inadequacy (social comparison) and self-doubt. As money concerns feature prominently in the central beliefs of money anxious youth, we predict that negative money motives will play a significant role in these youth’s desire to earn money. Along this line of reasoning therefore, we posit the following hypothesis: Hypothesis 3. Youth’s money anxiety is positively associated with youth’s negative money motives. 31 CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH MODEL AND HYPOTHESES 3.2.4 Youth’s Negative Money Motives and Youth’s Intrinsic Motivation to Work Intrinsic motivation to work refers to the extent to which an individual feels positive about doing good work and feels negative about working poorly (Yamauchi et al., 1994). Extant research has examined intrinsic motivation to work in youth, in part because it has been found that work attitudes that are developed prior to entering the workforce may serve as a basis for future work attitudes when youth start work (Krau, 1989). Specifically, previous research on the antecedents of intrinsic motivation to work among youth has examined the role of demographics (e.g., gender, age, parents’ background), the match between job requirement and individual skills, and whether the job provided opportunity to learn new things (Stern et al., 1990). In the present study, we extend this body of research on work motivation by examining the role of negative money motives in affecting youth’s intrinsic motivation to work. Previous research suggest that individuals’ intrinsic motivation to work is influenced by the beliefs that their efforts will lead to good performance, which in turn generate valued outcomes (e.g., Bandura, 1995; Katzell & Thompson, 1990). In addition, scholars have noted that the importance people assign to money does affect their work motivation and their work-related behaviors (e.g., Lawler, 1981). Indeed, extant studies have provided rather compelling evidence that individuals who work for extrinsic rewards may report lower levels of interest and satisfaction in the work itself. As well, research on money suggests that materialists are more instrumental in their approach towards work, and value work primarily for the buying power it provides (Richins & Rudmin, 1994). Along this line of reasoning, we argue that youth who are oriented towards making money for the purposes of overcoming feelings of 32 CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH MODEL AND HYPOTHESES inadequacy and self-doubt (i.e., negative motives) would also be more likely to be motivated by extrinsic reasons and rewards. In accord with the research stream on motivation which provided rather consistent evidence that extrinsic rewards tend to decrease task motivation and satisfaction, we argue that youth, whose underlying motives for making money are negative in nature, tend to work for extrinsic reasons -- that is, they tend to be less interested in doing work because they do not view work as having intrinsic meaning. Scholars have been noted that rewards can undermine intrinsic motivation when people engage in behaviors to gain acknowledgement or approval (e.g., Deci, Koestner & Ryan 1999). Hence, when individuals engage in work just for the sake of earning money to fulfill extrinsic goals (i.e., possessing negative money motives), they are less likely to have positive feelings about doing good work. Consistent with the arguments put forth, we present the following hypothesis: Hypothesis 4. Youth’s negative money motives are negatively associated with youth’s intrinsic motivation to work. 3.3 SUMMARY A research model linking the key variables in the study was presented in this chapter. From the model, several research hypotheses were put forth and discussed. In the next chapter, we will examine the research procedures used to empirically investigate these hypotheses. 33 CHAPTER FOUR: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY In this chapter, the research sample, procedures for data collection, instrumentation and procedures for data analyses are described. 4.1 RESEARCH SAMPLE Data were collected using questionnaire surveys. Respondents in this study comprised undergraduates aged 18-22 who were attending management courses at a large state university in Singapore. This group of respondents constitutes an appropriate sample for this study because extant research have noted that youth do develop general work orientations prior to working (Krau, 1987). In addition, we also collected independent responses from the parents of these undergraduates. This allowed us to avoid exclusive reliance on children’s self-report data. 4.2 PROCEDURES FOR DATA COLLECTION 4.2.1 Pretest A pretest of the initial questionnaire was conducted with 30 undergraduates and their parents. The main purpose of this pretest was to elicit feedback regarding the clarity of instructions and items in the instrument as well as the overall presentation of the questionnaire. The presentation of the questionnaire was refined based on comments and suggestions obtained. 34 CHAPTER FOUR: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 4.2.2 Questionnaire Surveys The final questionnaire was administered to a total of 250 undergraduates attending management classes in a large tertiary institution. Participation in the study was voluntary and undergraduates earned course credits for participation. A ten minute briefing was given to the class of participants, summarizing the objectives of the study as well as instructions for the survey. In addition, each student respondent was required to bring the parental survey questionnaires to their parents for completion. The surveys for parents were placed in 2 separate sealed envelopes. Included in the package addressed to the parents was a cover letter requesting both the father and mother to complete their respective surveys without consulting each other or their children. Parents were also asked to place the completed surveys in the returned envelopes and seal them. The researcher’s contact number was also provided to allow respondents to clarify any doubts. Completed sets of questionnaires were then collected by the researcher two weeks later during class. As we were interested only in responses from dual-income families, we included students from whom we obtained complete data, i.e., when both working parents completed the questionnaires. One hundred and eighty-five full data sets were obtained, thus yielding a useable response rate of about 74%. A response rate of at least 50% has been considered adequate for analysis and reporting (Babbie, 1998). Information provided by the parents suggest that the undergraduates came from intact, heterosexual families. 35 CHAPTER FOUR: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 4.3 INSTRUMENTATION An extensive review of the literature on job insecurity, money attitudes and work attitudes was carried out to obtain the scales measuring the variables in the present study. Wherever possible, scales that operationalized the various constructs were adapted from previous research where psychometric properties were already well established. Additionally, multiple item scales were used to operationalize the various constructs wherever possible. The scales used in this study are described in this section and the items are presented in the Appendix. 4.3.1 Parental Job Insecurity Extant research suggests that the investigation of job insecurity should include both employees’ job security specific to a job and employment security across jobs (e.g., Barling & Mendelson, 1999). In line with this, we assessed this variable using the Kuhnert and Vance’s (1992) 18-item scale measuring perceived job security. This scale contains items which measure the extent to which employees believe that they could keep their jobs indefinitely (job permanence) and the perception that they could easily get comparable jobs elsewhere in the event of present job loss (employment security). The items were scored on a five-point scale ranging from (1) Strongly disagree to (5) Strongly agree. Cronbach’s alphas for paternal job insecurity and maternal job insecurity were 0.73 and 0.76 respectively. The job permanence subscale comprised 12 items. Sample items include “I can keep my current job for as long as I want it” and “ I can be sure of my present job as long as I do good work”. Reliability coefficients for this subscale were 0.71 (paternal job permanence) and 0.70 (maternal job permanence). The second subscale, 36 CHAPTER FOUR: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY employment security, consisted of 6 items. Examples of items include “I have been actively recruited by other employers in the past year”, and “If I lost my present job, I would probably be unemployed for a long time”. Cronbach’s alphas for paternal and maternal employment security were 0.72 and 0.70 respectively. 4.3.2 Parental and Youth’s Money Anxiety Money anxiety was assessed with the scale developed by Lim and Teo (1997). The four items in this scale reflect the extent to which people worry about money and were scored on a scale from (1) Strongly disagree to (7) Strongly agree. Sample items include “I often feel anxious and defensive when asked about my personal finances” and “I worry about my finances most of the time”. Cronbach’s alphas of 0.72 (paternal money anxiety), 0.79 (maternal money anxiety) and 0.76 (youth’s money anxiety) were obtained in this study, suggesting good internal reliability. 4.3.3 Youth’s Negative Money Motives We assessed this variable using the 6-item scale developed by Srivastava et al. (2001). Items pertain to the importance of motives underlying respondents’ desire to earn money and comprised two factors. Respondents were asked to indicate the extent to which each money motive was important to them on a scale ranging from (1) Totally unimportant to (10) Extremely important. A Cronbach’s alpha of 0.90 was obtained for the scale, suggesting high inter-item consistency. The first factor, overcoming self-doubt, include items such as “the purpose for me to earn money is to prove that I am not a failure” and “to prove that I am not as incompetent as some people have claimed”. A Cronbach’s alpha of 0.92 was obtained 37 CHAPTER FOUR: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY for this sub-scale. Examples of items in the second factor, social comparison, include “the purpose for me to earn money is to show I am better than my friends / brothers / sisters / relatives”, and “to attract the attention and admiration of others”. A Cronbach’s alpha of 0.88 was obtained for this sub-scale. 4.3.4 Youth’s Intrinsic Motivation to Work This variable was assessed with the scale developed by Stern et al. (1990). The scale comprises 8 items scored from (1) Strongly disagree to (5) Strongly agree. The scale was designed to measure the extent to which youth are committed to high standards of quality at work and not desire to shirk (Stern et al., 1990). Examples of items include “A worker should feel some responsibility to do a decent job whether or not his/her supervisor is around” and “A person should feel a sense of pride in his/her work”. A Cronbach’s alpha of 0.70 was obtained, reflecting good inter-item consistency. 4.3.5 Covariate Extant research has established that unstable work and income generate money pressures (e.g., Conger, Patterson & Ge, 1995; Conger et al., 2000). Thus, it is possible that family income may impact on the relationship between job insecurity and money anxiety. As such, we control for family income as covariate in the structural equation analysis to reduce possible spurious relationships. 38 CHAPTER FOUR: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 4.4 PROCEDURES FOR DATA ANALYSES Structural equation modeling (SEM) will be used to empirically test the casual structure underlying the postulated relationships among parental job insecurity, parental money anxiety, youth’s money anxiety, negative money motives and intrinsic motivation to work in our study. Specifically, Arbuckle’s (2003) AMOS 5.0 program was used to carry out SEM in this study. SEM is superior to other techniques, e.g., regression and factor analysis, because it provides an overall assessment of the fit of all the variables in a hypothesized model to the data, while testing individual hypotheses. This provides the researcher with an evaluation of the entire research model as well as the specific relationships of interest. In addition, SEM is capable of assessing measurement error, unlike traditional multivariate procedures (Byrne, 2001). Given the desirable characteristics of SEM, this methodology has gained increased popularity in nonexperimental research (Byrne, 2001). To facilitate understanding of the results presented in the following chapter, this section provides the background to SEM. 4.4.1 Overview of Structural Equation Modeling SEM is a multivariate statistical methodology which takes a confirmatory approach to data analysis, allowing for the testing of a priori specified model based on theoretical expectations (Byrne, 2001), meaning that SEM is more appropriate for testing theoretical models using empirical data (Crowley & Fan, 1997). The structural equation model comprises two components: a measurement model and a structural model. The measurement model describes how the latent factors relate to their underlying constructs. The structural model describes how the latent factors relate to 39 CHAPTER FOUR: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY one another. By convention, the unobserved latent factors are depicted by ellipses, the observed measured variables by rectangles, and the associations among the variables are represented by single-headed arrows (Byrne, 2001). 1. Structural Equation Modeling Procedure SEM comprises of two important aspects. First, a series of structural equations, i.e., regression equations, are used to represent the casual processes under study. Second, these structural relations are modeled pictorially to present a clear conceptualization of the theory under study. The hypothesized model is tested statistically to determine the extent to which it is consistent with the data (Byrne, 2001). Typically, the maximum likelihood method of parameter estimation is used because this method ensures that optimal parameter estimates are yielded (Raykov, Tomer & Nesselroade, 1991). 2. Assessment of Model Fit Different indices are used to allow researchers to test the fit of the research model. However, there exists no universally accepted criterion to evaluate how well the hypothesized model fits the data (Crowley & Fan, 1997). AMOS offers several fit indices to allow researchers to justify the interpretation of their results. The comparative fit index (CFI; Bentler, 1990), tucker-lewis coefficient (TLI; Bentler & Bonett, 1980), goodness of fit index (GFI; Joreskog & Sorbom, 1984) and the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA; Browne & Cudek, 1993) will be used in the present study for the following reasons. 40 CHAPTER FOUR: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY The CFI accounts for sample size and is often the index of choice (Byrne, 2001). The TLI is also reported in this study as it is relatively independent of sample size, includes the degree of freedom in its computation and permits comparison of fit for nested models (Gassenheimer, Calantone, Schmitz & Robicheaux, 1994). We also reported the GFI, which is relatively stable in samples smaller than 250 (Hu & Bentler, 1995). All of these fit indices can range in value from 0 to 1, where 0.90 or above is considered a good fit (Schumacker & Lomax, 1996). Finally, RMSEA values of less than 0.05 are generally accepted as indicators for good model fit; while those between 0.05 and 0.08 are indicative of an adequate model fit (Browne & Cudek, 1993). In addition, the chi-square statistic (χ2) is reported which indicates the degree of model fit. More specifically, it summarizes the discrepancies between the sample covariance matrix and the one predicted by the measured model (Williams & Podsakoff, 1989). If the hypothesized model has a good fit, the chi-square statistic should be non-significant, for a given number of degrees of freedom. However, because the chi-square test is sensitive to sample size and model complexity, besides the fit indices discussed earlier, we also report the chi-square ratio (χ2/df), which adjusts for model complexity. In general, a chi-square ratio between 1 and 3 indicates acceptable fit (Arbuckle & Wothke, 1999). 3. Assessment of Parameter Estimates To test the individual hypotheses, the standardized parameter estimates are reported. The standardized parameter estimates rescale the variables to have variance of 1.0, thereby allowing comparisons of parameters throughout the model regardless 41 CHAPTER FOUR: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY of scaling information (Hoyle, 1995). The admissible range of values of the standardized coefficients for each path is –1.0 to 1.0, while the test statistic for each path should be greater than ± 1.96 for the parameter estimate to be statistically significant at an alpha level of 0.05 (Byrne, 2001). Generally, the path coefficients are similar to the effect sizes shown by the beta weights in regression. Thus, coefficients near zero have limited substantive effects. Additionally, higher coefficients indicate increasing importance of the path relationship (Hair, Anderson, Tathum & Black, 1998). 4.4.2 Nested Models Comparison Consistent with Anderson and Gerbing’s (1988) recommendations, we will assess the absolute fit of the hypothesized model using the nested models comparison. A model is said to be nested within another model when the set of freely estimated parameters of the first model is a subset of those estimated in the second model (Anderson & Gerbing, 1988). First, we will estimate the null model, in which all correlations among variables are zero. The null model represents the baseline for model comparison. Next, the hypothesized model will be fitted to the data. Finally, following Lee and Klein (2002), we will estimate an alternative model to test whether the addition of paths from parental job insecurity to youth’s money anxiety resulted in a significant improvement over the hypothesized model. 42 CHAPTER FOUR: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Previous research suggests that parents’ employment may influence young adolescents’ concept of money (Hoffman & Nye, 1974), suggesting that parental employment may have direct effects on children’s understanding and approach towards money. Along this line of reasoning, we added paths to test whether parental job insecurity exerted direct effects on youth’s money anxiety, instead of through parental money anxiety. If the addition of the paths significantly improves model fit, it indicates that the paths should be included in the model. 4.5 SUMMARY In this chapter, we have discussed the research procedures used to empirically investigate the research hypotheses. In the next chapter, we will present the results of these research procedures based on the data collected for this study. 43 CHAPTER FIVE: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION This chapter presents the results of statistical procedures carried out to investigate the research hypotheses. First, descriptive statistics, reliabilities and correlational analyses of the variables under study are presented. Thereafter, we examine the research hypotheses using results from structural equation modeling (SEM) analyses. Following this, the main findings of the study are discussed. 5.1 CHARACTERISTICS OF RESPONDENTS Demographic characteristics for undergraduates are summarized in Table 5.1. Women comprised 66.5% of undergraduates. This is consistent with the gender profile of students enrolled in undergraduate management classes in the institution where the data were collected. Majority of the student respondents were Chinese (92.4%). The remaining consisted of Malays (3.8%) and Indians (3.8%). Undergraduates’ ages were between 18 to 22 years. The mean age of students was 20 years old (SD = 1.6), while the mean ages for their fathers and mothers were 51 years (SD = 4.3) and 48 years (SD = 3.9) respectively (parents’ demographic characteristics not shown). All parents were employed at the time of the survey. In addition, all undergraduates participating in the study were full-time students, though 23.8% were currently employed. Among those currently employed, the majority (86.4%) were engaged in part-time work, while the remainder were engaged in temporary or full-time work. 44 CHAPTER FIVE: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION Table 5.1: Demographic Characteristics of Undergraduates Characteristics Valid Percentage of Respondents (%) Gender Male Female 33.5 66.5 Ethnic Group Chinese Malay Indian 92.4 3.8 3.8 Currently employed? Yes No 23.8 76.2 Nature of employment (if currently employed) Temporary Part-time Full-time 9.1 86.4 4.5 Note. N = 185 and missing values have been excluded 45 CHAPTER FIVE: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 5.2 DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS, RELIABILITIES AND CORRELATIONS Means, standard deviations, reliability coefficients and correlations of the variables under study are presented in Table 5.2. The reliability coefficients of the scales used in this study were reasonably good, ranging from 0.70 to 0.92. As family income was measured by a single item, its reliability coefficient was not reported. Table 5.2 summarized the Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients for all key variables in our study. Results of correlational analyses revealed that paternal job insecurity dimensions were significantly and positively correlated with paternal money anxiety (job permanence: r = 0.19; employment security: r = 0.01). However, the relationships between maternal job insecurity dimensions and maternal money anxiety were not statistically significant. Consistent with our hypotheses, paternal money anxiety was significantly and positively correlated with youth’s money anxiety (r = 0.28). Similarly, maternal money anxiety correlated significantly with youth’s money anxiety in a positive direction (r = 0.26). As hypothesized, youth’s money anxiety was significantly and positively correlated with the dimensions of youth’s negative money motives (overcoming selfdoubt: r = 0.37; social comparison: r = 0.41). Finally, dimensions of youth’s negative money motives were negatively and significantly correlated with their intrinsic motivation to work (overcoming self-doubt: r = -0.08; social comparison: r = -0.19). 46 47 2.18 2.41 2.45 3.30 3.12 4.90 5.29 4.52 Maternal money anxiety 8. Money anxiety Youth’s money anxiety 9. Money anxiety 46,900.06 45914.53 .49 1.20 -.28** -.01 .03 -.02 .01 .13* -.02 .16* .35** .38** .17** (.73) .91** .72** 1 -.35** -.04 -.04 -.06 -.06 .10 .02 -.04 .05 .14* .04 .10 .11 -.09 .01* .17** .14* .16* .35** .40** .14* .19** (.72) 3 (.71) .40** 2 -.20** -.26** -.17* -.06 -.05 -.03 -.04 -.14* -.06 .11 .07 .06 (.70) .48** 5 -.04 .11 .05 .06 (.76) .94** .74** 4 .01 -.03 .04 .01 .02 .06 -.07 .03 (.70) 6 Note. N = 185 and alpha coefficient reliability is reported in parentheses in the diagonal. Family income 14. Family income Youth’s intrinsic motivation to work 13. Intrinsic motivation to work 4.11 .10 3.52 Paternal money anxiety 7. Money anxiety 10. Youth’s negative money motives 11. Overcoming self-doubt 12. Social comparison .44 .49 .62 2.90 2.78 3.15 4. Maternal job insecurity 5. Job permanence 6. Employment security 1.11 .43 .47 .63 SD 2.93 2.77 3.25 M 1. Paternal job insecurity 2. Job permanence 3. Employment security Variable Table 5.2: Descriptive Statistics, Reliabilities and Correlations -.05 -.03 .06 .09 .09 .26** (.79) 8 * p < .05 -.19** -.20** .23** .15* .21** .28** .34** (.72) 7 -.05 -.15* .89** .90** (.90) 10 ** p < .01 -.22** -.26** .37** .41** .43** (.76) 9 .06 -.08* (.92) .60** 11 .02 -.19** (.88) 12 .06 (.70) 13 -- 14 CHAPTER FIVE: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION Results of the correlational analyses also reveal that the covariate, family income had several significant correlations with the endogenous constructs. Specifically, family income was correlated significantly with paternal money anxiety (r = -0.19) and youth’s money anxiety (r = -0.22). Inter-variable correlations of 0.80 and above could indicate problems of multicollinearity (Gujarati, 1995). Multicollinearity problems could make it difficult to determine each independent variable’s distinct contribution. The correlations between inter-variables were 0.43 or below in this study, suggesting that there was no such problem. 5.3 HYPOTHESES TESTING The postulated hypotheses in the research model shown in Figure 3.1 were tested using structural equation modeling (SEM). The results for the SEM analyses will be presented. This is followed by a discussion of the findings in this section. 5.3.1 Results of Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) Following the SEM procedures discussed in the previous chapter, data collected in this study were analyzed based on the total sample (N = 185). Anderson and Gerbing (1988) recommended that a sample size of 150 or more is sufficient for obtaining meaningful parameter estimates. Hence, the current sample size meets this requirement. In estimating the hypothesized structural equation model, we controlled for the effects of family income by including it as an exogenous variable predicting all the 48 CHAPTER FIVE: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION endogenous variables (Markel & Frone, 1998). As family income was measured by a single item, we made no adjustments for random measurement error. Consistent with Markel and Frone (1998), we fix its factor loading to 1.0 and measurement error to zero. For latent variables which were measured by one indicator variable, measurement error was taken into consideration by setting the path from the latent variable to the scale score equal to the product of the square root of the reliability and its standard deviation, and by setting the error variance equal to the product of the variance of the scale score and one minus the reliability (Williams & Hazer, 1986). Several sets of correlations among error terms were also estimated. Specifically, we allowed the disturbance (error) terms for the latent variables of paternal job insecurity and maternal job insecurity to correlate. This correlation allowed for nondirectional relations between the variables that were a result of unmodeled common causes (Markel & Frone, 1998). Similarly, the error terms between the latent variables for paternal and maternal money anxiety were allowed to correlate. In addition, we also allowed the error terms of the covariate to correlate with paternal and maternal job insecurity (Markel & Frone, 1998). The overall fit of the model was examined using the chi-square statistic (χ2), chi-square ratio (χ2/df), comparative fit index (CFI), tucker-lewis coefficient (TLI), goodness of fit index (GFI) and the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA). Following Anderson and Gerbing’s (1988) recommendations, several models were estimated. This method provides a framework for comparing the 49 CHAPTER FIVE: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION substantive model of interest with other theoretical alternatives (Anderson & Gerbing, 1988). We estimated (1) a null model, in which all the correlations among the variables are zero and this was used as a baseline model; (2) the hypothesized model presented in Figure 3.1; and (3) an alternative model (the hypothesized model with paths from parental job insecurity to youth’s money anxiety added). The sequence of nested alternative models was evaluated based on the sequential chi-square difference test. The fit indices of the nested models are shown in Table 5.3. Table 5.3: Fit Indices and Model Comparisons χ2 df χ2/df CFI TLI GFI RMSEA 390.97 55 7.11 .00 .00 .71 Hypothesized Model 49.00 34 1.44 .96 .93 Alternative Model 48.44 32 1.51 .95 .91 Model Null Model ∆χ2 ∆df .18 -- -- .96 .05 341.97 21 .95 .06 .56 2 Chi-square value for the null model was extremely high (χ2[55, 185] = 390.97), indicating a significant misfit of the null model with the data. This implies that the hypothesized relationships exist. Next, we tested the fit of the hypothesized model (as shown in Figure 3.1) to the data. Although a significant chi-square value (χ2[34, 185] = 49.00) was obtained, the chi-square ratio (1.44) indicated good fit. Additionally, the CFI (0.96), TLI (0.93) and GFI (0.96) for the model met the acceptable benchmark of 0.90. The RMSEA of 0.05 provided further support of an 50 CHAPTER FIVE: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION acceptable model fit. Moreover, the alternative model did not make a significant improvement over the initial hypothesized model, implying that the added paths (from parental job insecurity to youth’s money anxiety) should not be included in the model. Taken together, results of the model comparison suggest that the hypothesized model best fits the observed data, and is both statistically and theoretically viable. The final structural equation model is presented in Figure 5.1. As noted earlier, several sets of correlations among error terms were also estimated, but are not shown for presentation ease. Turning to Figure 5.1, it can be seen that all the parameter estimates were statistically significant at p < 0.05 with the exception of the path from maternal job insecurity to maternal money anxiety. 51 52 Job permanence Employment security Money anxiety .89 Maternal Money Anxiety Paternal Money Anxiety .99 Money anxiety .87 Youth’s Money Anxiety = Measured variables .23* .21** Money anxiety .73 * p < .05 ** p < .01 .82 -.29** Intrinsic motivation to work .78 Youth’s Intrinsic Motivation to Work Goodness of Fit Summary χ2 (34, N = 185) = 49.00, p < 0.05 χ2/df = 1.44 CFI = 0.96, TLI = 0.93 GFI = 0.96, RMSEA = 0.05 Social comparison Youth’s Negative Money Motives Overcoming self-doubt .64** Note. Values represent standardized path coefficients. To simplify presentation of the model, several sets of correlations among error terms are not shown. Also, the exogenous covariate is not shown. = Latent factors .93 .06 .35 Maternal Job Insecurity .10* .95 .36 Paternal Job Insecurity Job permanence Employment security Figure 5.1: Final Structural Equation Model CHAPTER FIVE: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION For ease of presentation, we also did not present the covariate relationships in the final model. Table 5.4 presents the relations of the covariate to the endogenous constructs. Several significant relationships between the covariate and the endogenous variables were revealed. Specifically, family income was negatively related to father’s (beta = -0.17) and youth’s money anxiety (beta = -0.20). However, family income was not significantly related to maternal money anxiety (beta = -0.05), youth’s negative money motives (beta = -0.05) and intrinsic motivation to work (beta = 0.09) Table 5.4: Covariate’s Relationships with Endogenous Factors Endogenous variables Family income Paternal money anxiety -.17** Maternal money anxiety -.05 Youth’s money anxiety -.20** Youth’s negative money motives -.05 Youth’s intrinsic motivation to work .09 Note. Values represent standardized path coefficients. * p < .05 ** p < .01 53 CHAPTER FIVE: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 5.3.2 Discussion Based on the results of the final structural model (Figure 5.1), the significance and direction of the standardized path coefficients were tested against the hypothesized relationships. This section discusses the main findings of the study. 1. Parental Job Insecurity to Parental Money Anxiety Results of SEM analyses showed that paternal job insecurity was significantly and positively associated with paternal money anxiety (beta = 0.10, p < 0.05), providing empirical support for Hypothesis 1a (paternal job insecurity is positively associated with paternal money anxiety). Contrary to our initial hypothesis, the relationship between maternal job insecurity and maternal money anxiety was not statistically significant. Hence, Hypothesis 1b (maternal job insecurity is positively associated with maternal money anxiety) was not empirically supported. While preliminary, this finding is noteworthy and may be better understood in terms of gender role socialization. In Asian societies such as Singapore, men are often socialized to be the main breadwinners in families. Thus, the work role may be perceived to be a salient part of fathers’ lives such that the transition from employee to parent may prove more challenging for fathers (Lim & Loo, 2003). Thus, a potential lack of work arising from job insecurity may have a more significant impact on fathers’ ability to provide for the family, generating considerable anxiety about money among fathers. On the other hand, mothers’ employment and income may be treated as secondary and supplement to their spouses’ income. Thus, mother’s perceived job insecurity is less consequential and has less significant impact on maternal money anxiety compared to 54 CHAPTER FIVE: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION father’s perceived job insecurity. Following these arguments, we suggest that the spillover effects of job insecurity on money anxiety may be more salient for fathers compared to mothers due to gender role socialization. 2. Parental Money Anxiety to Youth’s Money Anxiety As shown in Figure 5.1, the standardized parameter estimates suggest that both paternal and maternal money anxiety were significantly and positively associated with youth’s money anxiety (beta = 0.21, p < 0.01 and beta = 0.23, p < 0.05 respectively). Thus, both Hypothesis 2a and 2b (paternal/maternal money anxiety is positively associated with youth’s money anxiety) received empirical support. In line with research on family and economic socialization (e.g., Flouri, 1999; Rendon & Kranz, 1992), this finding provides support that parental money anxiety can be directly transmitted to youth. 3. Youth’s Money Anxiety to Youth’s Negative Money Motives The standardized parameter estimates shown in Figure 5.1 suggest that the path linking youth’s money anxiety to youth’s negative money motives was positive and statistically significant (beta = 0.64, p < 0.01), thus, supporting Hypothesis 3 (youth’s money anxiety is positively associated with youth’s negative money motives). This provides strong support that individuals’ money anxiety could have an impact on the motives underlying their purposes for earning money. Specifically, when youth are worried about money matters, they are more likely to develop negative money motives with an emphasis placed on overcoming self-doubt and social comparison. 55 CHAPTER FIVE: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 4. Youth’s Negative Money Motives to Youth’s Intrinsic Motivation to Work Results depicted in Figure 5.1 suggest that youth’s negative money motives were significantly and negatively associated with youth’s intrinsic motivation to work (beta = -0.29, p < 0.01). Hence, Hypothesis 4 (youth’s negative money motives are negatively associated with youth’s intrinsic motivation to work) was empirically supported. This result corroborates findings of previous research on motivation which suggests that working for extrinsic reasons and rewards may significantly decrease satisfaction and interest in the task itself. Therefore, youth whose underlying motives for acquiring money involved overcoming self-doubt and social comparison are driven mainly by extrinsic reasons, making them less interested in work itself. 5.4 SUMMARY Results of data analyses for examining the various hypotheses put forth earlier were presented in this chapter. Empirical support was found for all hypotheses, with the exception of the path from maternal job insecurity to maternal money anxiety. While our results are very preliminary, we suggest that gender role socialization could play a role in influencing the effects of parental job insecurity on money anxiety. In addition, several perspectives drawn from different streams of research such as the spillover mechanism; crossover mechanism; and family and economic socialization have helped us to understand the effects of parental job insecurity on youth’s attitudes. In the next chapter, we will conclude by integrating these perspectives to discuss the contributions and implications of our findings. 56 CHAPTER SIX: CONCLUSION This chapter summarizes results of this study. Contributions and implications of the findings will be discussed and several limitations as well as future research directions will be presented. 6.1 SUMMARY OF RESEARCH FINDINGS Table 6.1 summarizes results of hypotheses testing. Table 6.1: Summary of Hypotheses Testing Results Hypotheses Results Hypothesis 1a: Paternal job insecurity is positively associated with paternal money anxiety. Supported Hypothesis 1b: Maternal job insecurity is positively associated with maternal money anxiety. Not Supported Hypothesis 2a: Paternal money anxiety is positively associated with youth’s money anxiety. Supported Hypothesis 2b: Maternal money anxiety is positively associated with youth’s money anxiety. Supported Hypothesis 3: Youth’s money anxiety is positively associated with youth’s negative money motives. Supported Hypothesis 4: Youth’s negative money motives are negatively associated with youth’s intrinsic motivation to work. Supported 57 CHAPTER SIX: CONCLUSION Our results suggest that parental job insecurity spillover to the family domain. More specifically, our findings showed that paternal job insecurity affected their money anxiety. Maternal job insecurity, however, was not significantly related to maternal money anxiety. Therefore, the spillover effect of job insecurity is more relevant for fathers compared to mothers. We explained that this is plausibly due to the gender differences in their roles as providers for the family. This means that society may still view men as having major responsibility for family economic support (Voydanoff, 1990). Consistent with our predictions, we found that both paternal and maternal money anxiety crossover to influence youth’s money anxiety. This suggests that family and economic socialization do have an impact on youth’s money attitudes. Our analyses further suggest that youth’s money anxiety was related to their negative money motives. Hence, the extent to which youth worry about money will affect their motives for earning money. Specifically, these youth are more likely to develop negative money motives. Finally, our results showed that youth who place importance on negative money motives had lower levels of intrinsic motivation to work. 6.2 STUDY CONTRIBUTIONS In particular, our findings contribute to the job insecurity and money literature in five ways. First, it can be viewed as part of a growing body of literature focusing on the effects of parental work and union experiences on their children (e.g., Barling et al., 1991; Kelloway et al., 1996; Kelloway & Watts, 1994) and the effects of job insecurity beyond the job insecure employees (e.g., Barling et al., 1998; Barling & Mendelson, 1999; Lim & Loo, 2003). More specifically, this study extends the focus 58 CHAPTER SIX: CONCLUSION of that body of literature by suggesting that parental job insecurity does affect money anxiety, especially for fathers; and that parental money anxiety in turn, can and does have an impact on youth’s money anxiety and motives for earning money, which in turn, affect their intrinsic motivation to work. Second, this research not only contributes to the job insecurity literature but also extends and enriches the research stream on money attitudes (e.g., Furnham & Argyle, 1998). In doing so, our empirical findings served as the building block for more precise theory development in our attempt to understand the dynamics underlying the spillover effects of job insecurity. Specifically, results of our study showed that parental job insecurity does spillover to impact on parental money anxiety. Further, findings suggest that job insecurity is more salient for fathers, thus, generating a sense of money anxiety and accounting for the significant relationship between paternal job insecurity and money anxiety. However, the relationship between maternal job insecurity and maternal money anxiety did not receive empirical support. This finding is interesting and instructive in that it brings to light that gender differences in socialization as economic providers in the family still prevail. Mother’s employment and income may be treated as secondary and supplement to the spouse’s income. Thus, mother’s job insecurity is less consequential and has less significant impact on maternal money anxiety compared to father’s. Third, our findings suggest that parental money anxiety crossover to affect youth’s money anxiety. Thus, consistent with the literature on economic and family socialization (e.g., Galinsky, 1999), parental feelings of distress, concerns and worries 59 CHAPTER SIX: CONCLUSION about money matters do get transmitted to their children, either directly or indirectly through communications or children’s observations of interactions within the families. Fourth, youth’s money anxiety was found to be positively associated with their negative motives for making money. This finding is noteworthy in that it suggests that experiences of money anxiety may encourage youth to be driven by negative motives, i.e., seek money for the purposes of overcoming feelings of inadequacy and selfdoubt. In part, this may stem from youth’s perceptions of their parents’ job insecurity and money anxiety as a sign of failing to adequately and ably provide for the family. This, in turn, has important consequence for youth’s motivation to do good work, that is, youth who are driven by negative money motives were less likely to be motivated to do good work and may be extrinsically driven in their work motivation. Finally, through the use of a sample of Singaporean parents and their children, our study helps to generalize Western findings on the effects of job insecurity on family functioning in an Asian setting. Our results corroborate previous findings by Barling and colleagues who suggest that parental job insecurity has an impact on children’s attitudes. In sum, this study has examined the impact of parental job insecurity on youth’s money beliefs and motivation to work. In doing so, we have demonstrated the utility of the spillover and crossover mechanisms. 6.3 THEORETICAL AND PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS This research yields important information for scholars and can be viewed as part of the growing body of literature on the effects of job insecurity which goes beyond the job insecure employee (e.g., Barling et al., 1998; Barling & Mendelson, 60 CHAPTER SIX: CONCLUSION 1999; Lim & Loo, 2003). The present study demonstrates the utility of using the spillover mechanism to explain that parental job insecurity does affect money anxiety, especially for fathers. In turn, the crossover mechanism and literature on family and economic socialization also serve as useful frameworks to explain that parental money anxiety can have an impact on youth’s money beliefs. Findings of this study also yield important and actionable information for practitioners. Specifically, our findings have practical relevance in that they suggest that the effects of job insecurity are detrimental for the families of job insecure employees. Our results are consistent with those of earlier studies (e.g., Barling et al., 1998; Barling & Mendelson, 1999), which suggest that individuals who were exposed to parental unemployment may manifest negative work values and attitudes and that parental job insecurity may negatively affect youth’s motivation to work. As well, our study showed that job insecurity spilled over to money anxiety only for fathers. Thus, interventions may be in place to help parents, especially fathers, to develop skills in stress management, so as to counteract the effects of job insecurity on youth’s subsequent money and work attitudes. Since this study demonstrates the potential adverse consequences that job insecurity entails for both employees and their children, and the youth in our study are poised to enter the workforce, our results are of potential and salient cause of concern for organizations. Employers may want to be mindful that in the event that layoffs are inevitable, organizations could endeavor to minimize feelings of uncertainty for their employees by providing them with job assistance programs. Organizations may also consider the possibility of helping their employees cope financially by allowing them 61 CHAPTER SIX: CONCLUSION to continue to work, albeit, at reduced level and income, to ensure that they do not lose their entire source of income. 6.4 LIMITATIONS OF STUDY AND FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS A limitation of this study is that data were collected at a single point in time, thus, precluding us from drawing definite causal inferences about the relationships among variables. Hence, our results should be interpreted within this boundary condition. Longitudinal studies are necessary for more rigorous tests of causal direction. Despite this limitation, we would like to highlight that a key strength of our study is that data were obtained from multiple sources, i.e., fathers, mothers and their children. We emphasized in the cover letter of the questionnaire that fathers, mothers and youth should complete the surveys independently. This method of data collection helps us to overcome exclusive reliance on single source reports and helps to mitigate the potential problem of common-method bias. As noted earlier, for the purpose of this study, we have focused on dualincome heterosexual families to examine the potential differences between fathers’ and mothers’ influences on children’s attitudes. Previous research noted that when only one parent is present or employed, the parent may transmit all the effects of job insecurity on the child (Barling & Mendelson, 1999). A valuable step for future research therefore would be to examine the present research model in singleparent/single-income families. For instance, future research can examine the impact of maternal job insecurity in settings where women are the main family income providers. This would enable us to ascertain whether our present finding on the 62 CHAPTER SIX: CONCLUSION spillover effect of maternal perceived job insecurity on money anxiety would extend to families where mothers are the primary breadwinners. In addition, Parasuraman and Greenhaus (2002) noted that there is a dearth of research in the work-family literature on nontraditional families, e.g., blended families with children from both partners’ prior marriages, families with shared custody of children, homosexual families. Hence, an examination of the present model in these family structures can help to provide further corroboration to our findings that parental work experiences do affect youth’s money beliefs and motivation to work in different family structures. Another avenue for future research is to extend the conceptual model investigated here to include children’s identification with parents as a potential moderator. Extant research has found that the extent to which children identify with their parents moderates the effects of perceptions of parents’ job insecurity on children’s work beliefs (e.g. Barling et al., 1998). As well, in another stream of related research, Kelloway et al. (1996) noted that identification with parents moderates the effects of parents’ union involvement and children’s attitudes towards union. Thus, future research may extend this work by examining how identification with parents may impact on the relationship between parental job insecurity and children’s beliefs about work and money. For instance, children who identify more with fathers compared with mothers may be differently affected by paternal job insecurity and money anxiety than maternal job insecurity and money anxiety. 63 CHAPTER SIX: CONCLUSION 6.5 CONCLUDING REMARKS Although several issues warrant further investigation, our present research contributes significantly to extant literature on the effects of perceived job insecurity on the family by developing and testing a model linking these relationships. An important theme within the job insecurity literature has been that the effects of job insecurity can, and do, extend beyond the job insecure individuals, i.e., job insecurity does have an impact on the family of the job insecure employees. While the literature does provide some insights that parental job insecurity affects youth’s work attitudes, self-efficacy and academic performance (e.g., Barling et al., 1998; Barling, Zacharatos & Hepburn, 1999; Lim & Loo, 2003), little insight is presently available on the effects of job insecurity on individuals’ beliefs about money and their children’s money beliefs and motivation to work. Our present study highlighted the importance of adopting the spillover and crossover frameworks and the need to integrate the job insecurity and money literature when understanding the impact of job insecurity on employees’ money beliefs, and in turn, the effect of these beliefs on their children’s money anxiety, money motives and motivation to work. We also utilized the literature on economic and family socialization to suggest that parental beliefs and attitudes toward money can crossover to youth through interactions within the family. 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Please indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with the following statements by circling the appropriate number from the scale below. Please circle only one number for each item. Strongly Disagree Disagree Neither Agree/ Disagree Agree Strongly Agree 1. I can keep my current job for as long as I want it. 1 2 3 4 5 2. If I wanted to, I could easily find a comparable job elsewhere. 1 2 3 4 5 3. I am sure my job will give me retirement benefits. 1 2 3 4 5 4. Management of my organization has been threatening to close the organization for very long, so no one listens anymore. 1 2 3 4 5 5. I have been actively recruited by other employers in the past year. 1 2 3 4 5 6. If I lost my job, I would be employed elsewhere within a short time. 1 2 3 4 5 7. I am not really sure how long my present job will last. 1 2 3 4 5 8. If my particular job were phased out, the company would try very hard to place me in another position. 1 2 3 4 5 9. Rumors that the organization I work for will close are just rumors. 1 2 3 4 5 10. I can be sure of my present job as long as I do good work. 1 2 3 4 5 1 Strongly Disagree Disagree Neither Agree/ Disagree Agree Strongly Agree 11. If I were laid off from my current job, I would probably have to relocate to find comparable employment. 1 2 3 4 5 12. There would be obvious signs if the organization I work for was going to close. 1 2 3 4 5 13. There is a real need for my position in this company. 1 2 3 4 5 14. If I lost my present job, I would probably be unemployed for a long time. 1 2 3 4 5 15. If my current job were to be phased out by this company, I would probably have to learn new skills to be employable. 1 2 3 4 5 16. I am afraid of losing my present job. 1 2 3 4 5 17. Management threatens us that they will close so they can get more concessions from us. 1 2 3 4 5 18. The most reliable information about the future of this company comes from T.V., newspapers and magazines. 1 2 3 4 5 SECTION B The statements reflect how some people feel about money. Please indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with each of the statements and circle your response on the scale provided. Strongly Disagree Slightly Neutral Disagree Disagree Slightly Agree Agree Strongly Agree 1. I often feel inferior to others who have more money than myself. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 2. Compared to most other people I know, I believe that I think about money much more than they do. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 3. I often feel anxious and defensive when asked about my personal finances. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 4. I worry about my finances most of the time. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 2 SECTION C People’s attitudes vary according to their individual characteristics. Items in this section are intended to capture these differences. Please answer all questions in this section as they are crucial in the analyses of the data. Please provide your responses by circling the scales provided or filling in the blanks: 1. Sex: (1) Male 2. Ethnic Group: (1) Chinese (2) Female (3) Indian (2) Malay (4) Others, Please Specify___________ 3. Age: _________ years old 4. Annual income of the family unit you now live in: S$ ______________ Pls skip to comments section if you are not currently working 5. Tenure in present job: _____________ years___________months 6. Job Title: ____________________________ 7. What is the nature of your employment? (1) Temporary (2) Part-time (3) Full-time (4) Contract worker Please use this space to express any other feelings or opinions you may have about your job, organization, or work in general. Your input is extremely important and greatly appreciated. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR COOPERATION! 3 APPENDIX: STUDENT ASSESSMENT SURVEY SECTION A The statements reflect how some people feel about money. Please indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with each of the statements and circle your response on the scale provided. Strongly Disagree Slightly Neutral Disagree Disagree Slightly Agree Agree Strongly Agree 1. I often feel inferior to others who have more money than myself. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 2. Compared to most other people I know, I believe that I think about money much more than they do. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 3. I often feel anxious and defensive when asked about my personal finances. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 4. I worry about my finances most of the time. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 SECTION B Please indicate how important each of the following is as a purpose for you to earn money. '1' denotes 'the indicated purpose is totally unimportant' and '10' denotes 'the indicated purpose is extremely important'. Please circle the appropriate number. (totally unimportant) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 (extremely important) 1. To prove I am not a failure 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 2. To prove that I am not as incompetent as some people have claimed 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 3. To prove that I am not as dumb as some people assumed 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 4. To show I am better than my friends / brothers / sisters / relatives 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 5. To have a house and cars that are better than those of my neighbors 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6. To attract the attention and admiration of others 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 1 SECTION C The statements reflect how some people feel about work. Please indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with each of the statements and circle your response on the scale provided. Strongly Disagree Disagree Neither Agree/ Disagree Agree Strongly Agree 1. A worker should feel some responsibility to do a decent job whether or not his/her supervisor is around. 1 2 3 4 5 2. A person should feel a sense of pride in his/her work. 1 2 3 4 5 3. People want to do their best in their jobs, even if sometimes it means working overtime. 1 2 3 4 5 4. If a person can get away with it, he/she should try to work just a little slower than the boss expects him/her to. 1 2 3 4 5 5. The best job a worker can get is one which permits him/her to do almost nothing during the working day. 1 2 3 4 5 6. A worker who does a sloppy job ought to feel a little ashamed of himself/herself. 1 2 3 4 5 7. Doing a good job should mean as much to a worker as a good paycheck. 1 2 3 4 5 8. If I had the chance, I’d go through life without ever working. 1 2 3 4 5 SECTION D People’s attitudes vary according to their individual characteristics. Items in this section are intended to capture these differences. Please answer all questions in this section as they are crucial in the analyses of the data. Please provide your responses by circling the scales provided or filling in the blanks: 1. Sex: (1) Male 2. Ethnic Group: (1) Chinese (2) Female (3) Indian (2) Malay (4) Others, Please Specify___________ 2 3. Age: _________ years old 4. Are you currently employed? (1) Yes (2) No If yes, please specify nature of employment: (1) Temporary (2) Part-time (3) Full-time Please use this space to express any other feelings or opinions you may have about your parents’ jobs, organizations, or work in general. Your input is extremely important and greatly appreciated. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR COOPERATION! 3 [...]... job insecurity by systematically linking the job insecurity literature with research on money and economic socialization to provide insights into the dynamics underlying the relationships among parental job insecurity, money anxiety, children’s money beliefs and motivation to work In doing so, this research extends and contributes to previous research on the effects of parents’ work experiences and. .. changes and restructurings have threatened job insecurity, affecting the insecure employees and their families Specifically, examining the relationships among youth’s money anxiety, negative money motives and intrinsic motivation to work entail both theoretical and practical significance in that it helps provide scholars and practitioners with an understanding of how parental work experience and money. .. Youth’s Money Anxiety = Measured variables + + Money anxiety + Overcoming self-doubt Social comparison Youth’s Negative Money Motives _ Intrinsic motivation to work Youth’s Intrinsic Motivation to Work CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH MODEL AND HYPOTHESES 3.2 RESEARCH HYPOTHESES 3.2.1 Spillover Effects of Parental Job Insecurity on Parental Money Anxiety Increasing awareness on the inseparability of work and family... perceived job insecurity on their money beliefs as well as their children’s1 money beliefs and intrinsic motivation to work As parents often serve as the main source of money for their children, parental work experiences and money pressures can have significant impact on their children’s attitudes toward money, work and the economic world; yet, little is known about how job insecurity affects the employees’... the term “children” as used in this dissertation will refer to the offsprings of the job incumbents 3 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION money anxiety and their children’s money beliefs and intrinsic motivation to work Money anxiety refers to the extent to which people worry about money and includes unpleasant feelings of tension and apprehension toward money (Lim & Teo, 1997; Zeidner, 1994) Given the paucity... Finally, youth’s negative money motives are hypothesized to influence their intrinsic motivation to work In addition, the effect of family income was controlled statistically throughout the model 24 25 = Latent factors Job permanence Money anxiety Maternal Money Anxiety + Maternal Job Insecurity Employment security Paternal Money Anxiety Money anxiety + Job permanence Paternal Job Insecurity Employment... the job insecurity literature by developing and testing a model that clarifies the processes through which parental work experience and money anxiety affect their children’s beliefs about money and work This model draws upon research on the spillover and crossover mechanisms (e.g., Almeida, Wethington & Chandler, 1999; Bolger, DeLongis, Kessler & Wethington, 1989) to explain the impact of parental job. .. permeability of work and nonwork boundaries, we can expect feelings about one’s job to spillover to affect one’s mood in the nonwork domain (Judge & Ilies, 2004) More specifically, we argue that job insecurity arising from work will spillover to affect the employee’s money anxiety This is because job insecurity often generates considerable money pressures as individuals who experience job insecurity are... mechanism and literature on family and economic socialization to explain the various relationships More specifically, parental job insecurity is examined as an antecedent of parental money anxiety in the model In turn, we predict that parental money anxiety will influence youth’s money anxiety As depicted in Figure 3.1, youth’s money anxiety is, in turn, hypothesized to affect their negative money motives. .. theoretical arguments and empirical evidence provided by research on socialization, we predict that parental money anxiety arising from job insecurity can crossover to affect their children Finally, our study contributes to the literature on money and youth’s work attitudes by examining the impact of youth’s money anxiety on their negative money motives, defined as their motives for obtaining money for purpose ... 54 Parental Job Insecurity to Parental Money Anxiety 54 Parental Money Anxiety to Youth’s Money Anxiety 55 Youth’s Money Anxiety to Youth’s Negative Money Motives 55 Youth’s Negative Money Motives. .. Parental Money Anxiety on Youth’s Money Anxiety 3.2.3 Youth’s Money Anxiety and Youth’s Negative Money Motives 28 30 3.2.4 Youth’s Negative Money Motives and Youth’s Intrinsic Motivation to Work. .. among parental job insecurity, money anxiety, children’s money beliefs and motivation to work In doing so, this research extends and contributes to previous research on the effects of parents’ work