Work Family Boundary Management Profiles and Their Impact on Conflict and Turnover Intentions

This study aims to investigate how employees manage the boundary between work and family, identify distinct boundary management profiles, and analyze how these profiles differ according to demographic variables as well as how they relate to work-family conflict and turnover intention. The data were collected from employees in South Korea and Vietnam, yielding 259 valid responses for analysis. First, cluster analysis was conducted based on four criteria: segmentation and integration of the work and family domains, and centrality of work and family roles. As a result, four distinct boundary management profiles were identified: (1) Work-Family Juggling Experts, who place high value on both work and family roles equally and actively engage in both segmentation and integration strategies; (2) Active Boundary Managers with a Work Focus, who prioritize the work role over the family role while also actively engaging in both segmentation and integration strategies; (3) Mid-Range Compromisers, who place moderate value on both roles and engage at a moderate level in both boundary management strategies; (4) Work-Overwhelmed Passive Boundary Managers, who are primarily dominated by work demands and place low value on the family role while showing minimal engagement in boundary management efforts. Second, the analysis of the relationship between demographic variables and boundary management profiles showed that marital status was the only variable significantly associated with the profiles, whereas gender, age, job position, and nationality showed no statistically significant differences. Third, significant differences in work-family conflict and turnover intention were found across the profiles. Work-Family Juggling Experts reported significantly lower levels of work-family conflict and turnover intention than Work-Overwhelmed Passive Boundary Managers. Active Boundary Managers with a Work Focus and Mid-Range Compromisers reported moderate levels of conflict and turnover intention. Theoretical and managerial implications for both individuals and organizations regarding work-family balance were discussed.