Work-family conflicts and pain interference among midlife adults: a longitudinal serial mediation via family strain and loneliness

Objective: Work-family conflict has been shown to adversely affect individuals' health and function, particularly among individuals with chronic pain. The current study's longitudinal serial mediation model examined whether work-to-family conflict predicted greater pain interference through higher levels of family strain and loneliness among midlife adults with chronic pain.

Methods and measures: The study consisted of 303 participants from two waves of the national longitudinal study of Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) at wave II from 2004 to 2006 (M_age = 57, SD = 11) and wave 3 from 2013 to 2014 (M_age = 66, SD = 11). Participants were employed at time 1 and had chronic pain at both time points, and 54.5% of participants identified as female.

Results: Family strain at time 1 (T1) and loneliness at time 2 (T2), respectively, significantly mediated the association of work-to-family conflict (T1) on pain interference at T2. Participants with greater work-to-family conflict perceived more family strain, felt lonelier, and, in turn, reported experiencing higher interference from chronic pain.

Conclusion: Results suggest that unmanaged work-to-family conflict could be a risk factor that exacerbates chronic pain symptoms through worsening family relationships and loneliness among midlife adults with chronic pain.