While the work-family interference in employees’ work experiences and turnover intention has been empirically supported in the previous literature, it remains unexplored in the social work domain in the Chinese context. Based on Conservation of Resources Theory, the current study aims to examine the impact of work-family interference and four specific sources of work support on social workers’ perceived job burnout and turnover intention. Using a representative sub-sample (N = 1,414) in a national survey of Chinese social workers, multiple OLS regression analyses with simple slope checks on moderation effects were conducted. The results indicate that work-family interference has a significant and negative impact on both burnout and turnover intention, whereas work support from one’s top leader and manager moderated and reversed this impact. The study’s findings suggest that Conservation of Resources Theory is well suited to recognize the factors implicated in the burnout and turnover intention of social workers in China. Future research involving family factors will contribute to understand the full mechanism of work-family interference on social workers’ work outcomes. Further exploration of possible measures in mitigating burnout and turnover are suggested.

The current study examined the relationships among work support, role stress, work-family conflict, and life satisfaction, with a sample of social workers in China’s Pearl River Delta (N = 1414). Using structure equation modelling, the study revealed that social workers’ life satisfaction reduced because of role conflict and work-family conflicts. Work-family conflict partially mediated the negative effects of role ambiguity and conflict on social workers’ life satisfaction. Work support from their director, manager, supervisor, and co-workers protectively reduced role stress and work-family conflict. The findings emphasize the significance of managing the interference between work and family for social workers’ well-being.

Summary: The current study employed the Stress-Strain-Outcome model to understand the structural process of work support, work-family conflict (WFC), burnout, and job satisfaction among Chinese social workers. Using structural equation modeling, we employed a survey dataset of 1,414 social workers to estimate how burnout mediated the influences of work support and WFC on job satisfaction. Findings: The results revealed that WFC directly promotes all three dimensions of burnout (i.e., depersonalization, emotional exhaustion, and reduced personal accomplishment), and indirectly impairs job satisfaction through the partial mediation of emotional exhaustion and reduced personal accomplishment, net of role stresses or other demographic characteristics. Work support eased burnout and promoted job satisfaction. Applications: We highlight that WFC is a noteworthy job stressor impairing social workers’ vocational health. Possible initiatives to promote social support and prevent such stressors are recommended.

Employment is a vital component of a substance abuser’s recovery, but little is known about how stigma affects employment for substance abusers receiving treatment. The current study investigates the effects of stigma and treatment on employment in the Chinese context. Using a sample of substance abusers (N = 3.978), multiple logistics regressions with moderation effects were employed. The findings show that treatments positively reduce confirmative experiences of anticipated stigma, and promote employment only when respondents do not perceive stigma. The findings highlight the impact of perceived stigma on limiting substance abusers’ chances of being employed, implying that eliminating stigma is the foundation for recovery. Possible strategies that can be explored for reducing stigma are discussed.

The current study explored how anti-substance abuse campaigns influence substance abusers’ psychological health through the perception of stigma. The study is based on a sample of substance abusers who received community-based treatments (n = 3457) and used structural equation modeling to estimate the role of perceived stigma in mediating between perceptions of overstatement of harm conveyed in anti-substance abuse campaigns and psychological outcomes. The results revealed that substance abusers’ perception of overstatement of the harm caused by the substances and substance abusers enhanced their perceived stigma and impaired their psychological health in terms of anxiety, depression, and somatization, through both direct and indirect pathways. The results advocate for proper strategies in the design of anti-substance abuse campaigns. Possible initiatives to reduce substance abusers’ perceived stigma are recommended.