Examining the roles of self-compassion and self-control in managing work-family conflicts and preventing burnout during the pandemic: A three-wave longitudinal study in China.

According to the Work/Family Border Theory, the pandemic-induced disruptions, such as widespread teleworking adoption, have blurred work and family boundaries. Meanwhile, the Work-Home Resources Model posited that the impact of such disruptions on work-family conflicts and mental health depends on individual resources. Building on previous research, this study hypothesised that self-compassion and self-control mitigate pandemic burnout by reducing work-family conflicts during pandemic. In particular, we proposed that the proactive nature of self-compassion motivates individuals to seek resources for managing work-family conflicts, while self-control translates this motivation into action through behavioural regulation and adaptive coping. Using a three-wave longitudinal design with 568 participants in China during heightened pandemic severity, the study revealed that both self-compassion and self-control were associated with lower pandemic burnout, mediated through reduced work-family conflict. The indirect effect of self-compassion on pandemic burnout via work-family conflicts was significant only for individuals with high or average self-control, emphasising the complementary role of both factors. Our findings underscore the protective value of self-compassion and self-control in navigating work-family conflicts during collective adversities, advocating for their incorporation in theoretical frameworks and practical intervention.

A 6-Item Family Resilience Scale (FRS6) for Measuring Longitudinal Trajectory of Family Adjustment.

Two studies were conducted in Hong Kong to validate a brief measure of family resilience based on the three-factor CPR model. The CPR model stipulates that family resilience comprises three major factors: Communication and Connectedness (C), Positive Framing (P), and External Resources (R). Study 1 abbreviated the 16-item Family Resilience Scale (FRS16) into six items (FRS6) with a parent sample in the community (N = 1270). Study 2 tested the validity of the FRS6 with a single parent sample (N = 336). The result of Study 1 suggests a dominant general family resilience factor structure with three distinct subfactors. The highest factor loading items from each of the three subfactors were retained in the six-item FRS6. The resultant FRS6 was internally consistent and related to various correlates in similar or better strengths as compared to the FRS16. The results of a separate sample in Study 2 indicated that the FRS6 demonstrated satisfactory internal reliability and correlated significantly with individual resilience, quality of life, anxiety, and depression in the expected directions. Both studies supported that the FRS6 is a psychometrically sound measure of family resilience and can be used in longitudinal studies that aim to chart the trajectory of family adjustment following life adversities.

The Role of Family Resilience and Pandemic Burnout on Mental Health: A Two-Wave Study in China.

Family resilience refers to the processes through which a family adapts to and bounces back from adversities. Pandemic burnout refers to feeling emotionally exhausted, cynical, and lack of accomplishment during the pandemic and/or toward various preventive polices and measures. This two-wave, region-wide, longitudinal study included 796 adult participants residing in mainland China. Participants completed online surveys at two time points during the COVID-19 pandemic. Time 1 (T1) survey was conducted when the number of new infected cases in China stabilized, while Time 2 (T2) was conducted 5 months later when there was a sudden surge of new infected cases. Results of a hierarchical regression analysis revealed that the interaction and main effects of pandemic burnout and family resilience at T2 showed significant incremental prediction of depression and anxiety at T2, after controlling for demographic as well as individual and family resilience at T1. These results supported the hypotheses that current family resilience functions as a protective factor, whereas pandemic burnout functions as a risk factor of mental health during successive waves of pandemic outbreaks. In particular, family resilience at T2 mitigated the negative impact of high pandemic burnout on anxiety and depression at T2.

"It Is My Choice to Control Myself!": Testing the Mediating Roles of Expectancy and Value in the Association Between Perceived Choice and Self-Control Success.

Past research suggested that when individuals feel that it is their free choice to perform a task, they are more likely to succeed. However, little has been known about the effect of perceived choice of self-control and the psychological processes underlying the benefits of this perception in everyday contexts. To fill this gap, a 7-day experience sampling study (115 college students and 1,725 reported episodes of self-control) was conducted to test whether confidence in sustaining the current self-control activity (expectancy) and perceived value of current self-control (value) could mediate the link between perceived choice and success in the current self-control activity. The results of multilevel analysis suggested that the perceived choice can boost self-control success by increasing expectancy and value of self-control. These findings add mechanistic understanding of the effect of perceived choice on self-control success.

Family Resilience Scale Short Form (FRS16): Validation in the US and Chinese Samples.

Family resilience, which refers to the processes through which a family adapts to and thrives from adversities, has growing importance in recent years. In response to the need for further research on family resilience, the present research aims to abbreviate and validate Sixbey's Family Resilience Assessment Scale (FRAS) into a 16-item version Family Resilience Scale Short Form in the US (FRS16) and Chinese (FRS16_C) samples. The samples included 1,236 (Study 1) and 1,135 (Study 2) participants from the US and China, respectively. Results of confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) supported the proposed three-factor structure of FRS16: Family Communication and Connectedness, Positive Framing, and External Support across two samples. Overall, the reliability and validity of full and subscales of FRS16 and FRS16_C were satisfactory. Multi-group CFA revealed that both configural and metric invariance are supported, suggesting that participants in the US and Chinese samples assign comparable meaning to the latent factors of FRS16. Results suggested that FRS16 and FRS16_C are valid instruments for family resilience in the US and Chinese samples.