Dual-Earner Couples in Singapore: An Examination of Work and Nonwork Sources of Their Experienced Burnout

Abstract

Based on data obtained from 95 dual-earner couples in Singapore, the study reported here examined a model of work and nonwork stressors as determinants of burnout. The model was underpinned by a conceptualization of burnout as emanating from the differential social roles performed by men and women within a gender stratified social structure. T-test, path, and moderated multiple regression analyses were used to examine the hypothesized relationships. Three findings were salient. First, wives reported significantly more burnout than husbands. Second, burnout in wives was influenced by both work and nonwork stressors while burnout in husbands was influenced only by work stressors. Third, the effect of job-spouse conflict on burnout in wives was moderated by quality of spouse experience. In general, the model was better able to predict burnout in wives (R = .34) than in husbands (R² = .16). Limitations of the study, implications of the findings and directions for future studies are discussed.