Research into the effects of Flexible Working Hours and other Working Time Arrangements

From early 2003, FlexTime Limited became involved with Adelphi University of New York in a Research Project into the effects of Flexible Working Hours and other Working Time Arrangements.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship of flexible work arrangements and work related outcomes while taking into account the mediating effects of -

• perceived organisational support
• affective organisational commitment
• work-family conflict.

A wealth of worldwide research material since the 1970’s had already pointed to the many advantages which a flexible working hours scheme can bring to the workforce for example - reduction in absenteeism, overtime working & employee turnover. In advance of the study with Adelphi University, FlexTime looked at what earlier studies were saying. Looking at the outcome of these many research projects just consolidated us in our view of the existence of the many advantages which a flexible working hours scheme can bring to the workforce. e.g. reductions in absenteeism, overtime working & employee turnover. Therefore the question which emerged then was – why do research to show the existence of such outcomes? FlexTime then wanted to take these outcomes as our starting point. Thus this new research would look at why such outcomes might happen. Why for example might absenteeism reduce in a flexible working hours environment?

FlexTime and Adelphi University

Without wishing to assume too much in terms of what focus Adelphi University needed from the research, as their methods/outcome are entirely independent of our interpretation, to us it was reasonably evident that their need for such research was rooted in the psychology of the worker in the flexible working context. This was quite a new departure in terms of research in this field. Indeed, such an approach proved initially uneasy for the research effort in certain respects. Thus, FlexTime and Adelphi University set 10 pages of research questions and the intention was for each organisation which we approached to get agreement from their employees to respond to. However, we then found the questions were not universally popular amongst the HR departments – with whom we approached to work with us on the research. Some cited the questions as “too invasive” or “too tough”.

To their credit Adelphi University encouraged FlexTime, to nonetheless persist with largely the initially agreed questions. This was on the basis of the old adage that “there is no gain without pain”.

The view was also taken that as the questionnaire was quite long and the questions were of a psychological nature, we would accept a lower number of participants than would be the case with a simpler exercise.

Acornerstone of the researchwas an already accepted principle gained from earlier expert research into the general subject of Human Resources i.e. "reciprocity".

Primarily, the logic behind this is based on the HR theory that - when employee’s perceive support from their organisation they feel an obligation to reciprocate in order to continue receiving this support. Therefore, for employees, affective organisational support is one way of reciprocating. There were other findings.

In Appendix One (Contact FlexTime) you will see the affects or outcome from the research into flexible working. In Appendix Two – which is considerably more subtle and indeed quite academic – you will see how “slices” or further aspects of the same research project can produce additional interpretations. Therefore, the study in Appendix Two (Contact FlexTime) singularly examines whether employee preference for the integration of work & home roles or alternatively their preference segmentation of work & home roles, interacts with the use of flexible work arrangements to affect work-related outcomes.

One conclusion indicates that organisations need to look at the individuals’ specific need in terms of working time arrangements and to match that with organisational considerations – as not everyone wants to integrate work & home roles and some deliberately like to segment the roles. Thus the research is showing the diversity that is emerging in this whole area.

The Research was entered by Adelphi University as a paper in the Annual Conference of the Institute of Behaviour & Applied Management in Tampa, Florida in November 2003 an was awarded first place in the Human Resources category.

Research into flexible working will be on-going between FlexTime and Adelphi University and will in a sense be a permanent project. Over the longer time we feel this will bring a lot more to the subject of Flexible Working and indeed the wider context of HR activity in the workplace.