Striving for balance between family and work demands among Iranian nurses.

The study reported here explored Iranian nurses' experience of managing work and family roles. Grounded theory method guided the data collection and data analysis from both individual and focus group interviews. Five categories emerged: family role, working conditions, seeking support, perceiving dissatisfaction, and perceiving threats to health. The core concept that emerged was striving for balance between family and work demands. In the work-family role the Iranian nurses faced significant pressures, and they mostly relied on their own capabilities to create balance, often neglecting their own needs. This resulted in perceived dissatisfaction and health threats.