There are various benefits to being in a dual-income household, such as greater economic freedom.  Research from the University of Bath demonstrates, however, that such couples can also face various challenges in terms of maintaining a good work-life balance and an equitable share of domestic responsibilities.

The study found, however, a strong connection between the home and work environment.  For instance, if we have supportive colleagues and a generally positive work environment, we’re much more likely to pass on that positivity to our how environment.  Similarly, a loving relationship at home usually translates into greater creativity and dedication at work.

“Employees take the support they receive from co-workers home with them, and in a loving relationship they transfer this support to their partner,” the researchers explain. “This might mean they encourage them to open up about stresses, seek to resolve issues, or make improvements to the juggle of work-life arrangements that benefits the family.”

Happiness spillover

The researchers tracked the everyday experiences of 260 dual-income couples over six weeks to understand how their home and work lives affect each other.  The ultimate aim of the research was to better understand where people go to for support, and whether they ultimately found what they were looking for.

They built on previous work suggesting that our boss is often the first port of call when it comes to conflict between our personal and professional lives, with requests for more flexible hours a common one.

The research found, however, that immediate colleagues tend to be more influential, in terms of support and advice at least.  The authors argue that our colleagues often act as a kind of “work spouse” to help us through difficult times.  They are often the starting point of what the researchers call a “gain spiral”, which is where the benefits we gain from this supporting relationship at work spills over into our home life, where they get shared with our partner.

Taking our work home

This means that we’re typically taking our work home with us, and a supportive relationship at work translates into a loving relationship at home, and vice versa.  This often becomes a virtuous circle, with partners then feeling happier and more satisfied, which often translates into them feeling more positive about their work, and therefore more likely to support others.

As such, the authors argue that it is perhaps time that we rethink the relationships we have with colleagues and regard them as people who are highly influential on our personal lives as well as people we share our professional lives with.

“So much research points to the stresses of being in a dual-income couple, it’s refreshing to see a win for loving relationships alongside work,” the researchers conclude. “While we’re not suggesting employers should meddle in relationships, they may be able to positively contribute to the quality of relationships at home by putting policies and procedures in place to minimize work-family conflict, such as limiting overtime and expectations to respond to emails outside of hours.”