Effect of Psycho-Social Shift Schedules on Family Life Among Kenya Airways Crew in Nairobi City County, Kenya
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.53819/81018102t5378Abstract
Kenya Airways flight crew shift work is perceived to profoundly impact the emotional, economic, social and temporal patterns of family life. The study investigated the effect of psycho-social shift schedules on family life among Kenya Airways crew in Nairobi City County, Kenya. The research was underpinned on the Social Exchange Theory while a case study design was employed. The research targeted a population consisting of 1085 employees from Kenya Airways operating in Embakasi. Both stratified and simple random sampling methods were used to choose 217 respondents for the research. Quantitative data was collected using questionnaires while qualitative data was gathered via interview guides. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences was used to analyze quantitative data through descriptive statistics and regression analysis, whereas thematic analysis aided in the analysis of qualitative data. The research findings revealed that there existed a positive and significant correlation between shift schedules and family life of Kenya Airways crew as indicated by a beta coefficient of 0.668 (p < 0.05). The study concluded that psycho-social shift schedules significantly influenced family life among crew members, with shift pattern demands interfering with family time, frequency of shifts preventing attendance to family functions, and duration of shifts creating gaps between crew members and their children. The findings demonstrated that irregular work patterns, psychological stress from shift work, and social disruption from unpredictable schedules directly impact crew members' family relationships, spousal satisfaction, parent-child interactions, and overall family wellbeing. The study recommends that Kenya Airways should implement flexible shift scheduling practices that accommodate family responsibilities, optimize shift duration to prevent extended working hours that lead to family separation, and establish more predictable shift patterns that allow crew members to maintain consistent roles within their households while reducing work-family conflicts.
Keywords: Psycho-Social Shift Schedules, Family Life, Kenya Airways, Nairobi City County, Kenya
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