Divided When Crisis Comes: How Perceived Self–Partner Disagreements over COVID-19 Prevention Measures Relate to Employee Work Outcomes at Home

As a response to the COVID-19 pandemic, our societies went into a lockdown model and many organizations required or permitted their employees to work from home. As a result, employees need to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic while they work from home, providing an opportunity to examine how COVID-19 prevention experiences influence those who are working from home. Based on the interpersonal self-regulation perspective, we propose that employees who perceive having more disagreements with their partners over COVID-19 prevention measures are more likely to experience a reduction in their identification with the partner which is subsequently associated with their negative work outcomes through emotional exhaustion. Results from a two-wave survey study with a sample of 282 employees who worked from home during the COVID-19 pandemic supported our predictions: perceived self-partner disagreements over COVID-19 prevention measures related to a reduction in identification with the partner, which was subsequently associated with exhausted regulatory resources and undermined work outcomes. Furthermore, these negative effects were particularly salient for individuals who were not married. Theoretical and practical implications for family-to-work interference and working from home in times of crisis are discussed.