PhD student profile - Xinling Jiang
Thesis title: Remote working and work-life balance: a case study of male railway engineers in the UK
Research summary
Xinling’s research examines the impact of remote working on the work–life balance of railway engineers. While remote working has been enabled by technological advancements over the past 60 years, it can blur the boundaries between professional and personal life, raising concerns about fatigue and wellbeing. These challenges are particularly relevant in the railway sector, which is already associated with occupational stress due to shift patterns and the demands of large infrastructure projects.
The study focuses on male railway engineers, whose safety-critical roles involve decision-making that directly affects the safety of both colleagues and the public. Adopting a qualitative approach, Xinling gathers insights from engineers across different departments to capture under-researched lived experiences and identify both team-level and organisation-wide patterns. This enables an assessment of whether local working practices or broader organisational policies have a greater influence on employee wellbeing.
By focusing on male engineers, the research addresses a gap in work–life balance literature, which has largely centred on female employees. It also explores how gendered differences in the use of workplace policies may shape approaches to balancing work and personal life, and whether alternative forms of support may better meet employees’ needs.
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