Kaylee Hackney, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Management Baylor University
Media
Biography
Kaylee is passionate about helping women flourish at work. She leads the Women in Leadership Initiative at Baylor University and is a faculty advisor for the Women in Business at Baylor student organization. She also hosts the Elegant Balance podcast, where she shares her expertise on the work-life interface to help professional women achieve better work-life balance.
Areas of Expertise
Education
Eastern Illinois University
BA
French
Eastern Illinois University
MBA
Florida State University
Ph.D. in Business Administration
Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management
Media Appearances
When to Tell Your Employer About Your Pregnancy
The HR Digest online
2023-10-26
Offering guidance to worried pregnant employees, this article references research led by Baylor management professor Kaylee Hackney about the negative effects of perceived pregnancy discrimination on expectant parents.
Business Review - Oh, Baby Baby
KWBU-FM (NPR/Waco) online
2023-03-30
AUDIO: Workplace discrimination makes for a stressful environment. Kaylee Hackney, Ph.D., assistant professor of management, studied pregnancy workplace discrimination and discovered how workplace stress can affect the mother.
5 Ways Leaders Can Support Adoptive Parents
Harvard Business Review online
2023-03-03
Baylor management professors Kaylee J. Hackney, Ph.D., Matthew J. Quade, Ph.D., and Dawn S. Carlson, Ph.D., write that organizational support for adoption – an intentional effort on the part of an organization – has a far-reaching positive impact for both the employees and the organization. The authors outline five ways leaders can better support adoptive parents.
Business Review - “A Valuable Resource”
KWBU-FM online
2022-08-25
AUDIO: Kaylee Hackney, Ph.D., assistant professor of management at Baylor, discusses several factors that influence veterans' successful transition into civilian life.
How to Successfully Shift From “Work Mode” to “Family Mode
Fatherly online
2022-05-03
Kaylee Hackney, Ph.D., assistant professor of management and an employee well-being expert, shares insight into best practices when working from home and then shifting to family mode. Hackney suggests having a dedicated workspace and at the end of the day building in a transition — something that replaces the mental decompression granted by a commute.
Increased organizational support for employee adoption efforts brings positive benefits
Florida News Times online
2021-06-24
According to a new study from Baylor University, when an organization assists an employee who chooses adoption, the employee, his family, the adopted child, and the organization itself experience positive benefits and outcomes.
How to Keep Pregnant Workers Safe and Supported
Occupational Health & Safety online
2020-07-22
Pregnancy discrimination in the workplace—direct or indirect—can have effects on the woman and baby’s health. Make sure you are supporting and respecting your pregnant workers, especially with new legislation.
Increased organizational support for employees’ adoption efforts yields positive benefits
Health Medicine Network online
2021-06-23
When an organization supports its employees who choose to adopt children, the employees, their families, the adopted children and the organization itself experience positive benefits and outcomes, according to new research from Baylor University.
How Workplace Discrimination Affects Pregnant Mothers & Unborn Babies
Babygaga
2020-07-12
Women in the workplace can find themselves having to work harder to prove that they are just as good as their male counterparts so that when it is time for promotions, they are not overlooked simply because of their gender. While gender discrimination may have declined slightly over the years, in many organizations and male-dominated fields of work, it can still be found. And unfortunately, for those women who become pregnant, the workplace can become a toxic environment that is not beneficial for the mother-to-be's health.
Pregnancy Discrimination In The Workplace Affects Mother And Baby Health
Forbes online
2020-07-11
A landmark Baylor University study published in the Journal of Applied Psychology surveyed 252 pregnant employees. The researchers measured perceived pregnancy discrimination, perceived stress, demographics and postpartum depressive symptoms. Other measurements included the babies' health outcomes, such as gestational age, Apgar score (heart rate, respiration, muscle tone, reflex response and color), birth weight and visits to the doctor. The results showed that pregnancy discrimination has a negative impact on the mother’s and baby’s health. Pregnancy discrimination was linked to increased levels of postpartum depressive symptoms for mothers and lower birth weights, lower gestational ages and increased numbers of doctor visits for babies.
When the Boss is Bad for the Baby
Bloomberg online
2020-07-09
A Baylor University study published in the Journal of Applied Psychology surveyed 252 pregnant employees. The researchers measured perceived pregnancy discrimination, perceived stress, demographics and postpartum depressive symptoms. Other measurements included the babies' health outcomes, such as gestational age, Apgar score (heart rate, respiration, muscle tone, reflex response and color), birth weight and visits to the doctor.
Articles
How We Can Help Working Moms “Win”: The Impact of Social Support During Pregnancy on Postpartum Working Mom Guilt
Journal of ManagementHackney, K. J., Thurgood, G. R., Carlson, D. S., & Thompson, M. J.
2025
Using signaling theory, this research examines the role that social support during pregnancy plays in reducing work–family guilt upon returning to work after maternity leave. Specifically, we consider four sources of social support (two from the work domain: supervisor and coworkers; and two from the non-work domain: spouse and friends) and the signaling effect they have on a mother’s work–family guilt upon returning to work after maternity leave and her subsequent job and family satisfaction. Based on a sample of 247 women who completed surveys both before taking maternity leave and upon returning to the workforce, we found that supervisor, coworker, and friend support enhanced job satisfaction through reduced work-induced guilt.
The impact of father’s pregnancy discrimination on the work–family interface: An action-regulation approach
Human RelationsCarlson, D. S., Hackney, K., Thompson, M. J., & Thurgood, G. R.
2025
Do fathers experience discrimination during pregnancy? YES! In this study, we explore the experience of fathers’ pregnancy discrimination (FPD), or the perceived unfavorable treatment of fathers in the workplace due to their wives expecting a baby. Applying the action regulation model of work–family balance, we examine FPD as a resource barrier that impacts both the father’s perceived work–family balance and the father’s and mother’s turnover. In a sample of 247 expectant fathers across four time periods using a newly developed and validated measure of FPD, we examine the four different action strategies that fathers might use in reaction to the resource barrier of FPD to attain work and family goals. Policy use (engagement strategy) was ineffective, but going the extra mile (changing strategy) was effective in achieving greater perceived work–family balance.
Welcome to parenthood!? An examination of the far-reaching effects of perceived adoption stigma in the workplace
Human RelationsHackney, K. J., Quade, M. J., Carlson, D. S., Hanlon, R. P., & Thurgood, G. R.
2024
While there may be no difference in terms of the love, care, and bond shared between parent and child, relationships created through adoption are often viewed less favorably in our society compared with those that possess a biological tie. Integrating minority stress and family systems theories, we seek to better understand working adoptive parents’ experiences and how the perceived stigma of being an adoptive parent negatively impacts a variety of work and family outcomes. Using a sample of 501 couples that adopted a child, we find that work–family conflict mediates the relationship between perceived adoption stigma and primary effects (i.e. job satisfaction and depression) as well as spillover effects (i.e. family satisfaction and parent–child bonding) for the job incumbent.
Partner psychological abuse: Can you leave home at work?
Journal of Occupational and Organizational PsychologyMerideth J. Thompson, Kaylee Hackney, Wayne Crawford, Julena M. Bonner, Dawn S. Carlson
2024
Utilizing sociometer theory, we examine the impact of partner psychological abuse at home on an individual's self-esteem and the resulting effects on job performance in the work domain. Further, we propose that the respondent's ability to psychologically detach from family will buffer those effects. Using a sample of dual-career married couples, we use the actor–partner interdependence model to test this for both individuals in the couple (176 men and 176 women) and find that psychological abuse by one's partner at home diminishes the target's self-esteem and contributes to reduced job performance and that psychological detachment from family moderated the effect of psychological abuse on self-esteem for men only, such that men are able to detach and buffer the effects of abuse on their job performance. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.
Examining the effects of perceived pregnancy discrimination on mother and baby health
Journal of Applied PsychologyHackney, K. J., Daniels, S. R., Paustian-Underdahl, S., Perrewé, P. L., Mandeville, A. & Eaton, A.
2021
Vicarious abusive supervision and turnover in working mothers: Does financial dependency trigger emotional disconnect?
Journal of Organizational BehaviorThompson, M. J., Carlson, D. S., Hackney, K. J., Vogel, R.
2021
It takes a village: How organizational support for adoption positively affects employees and their families
Journal of Occupational and Organizational PsychologyQuade, M. J., Hackney, K. J., Carlson, D. S., & Hanlon, R. P.
2021
With a little help from my (her) friends: The role of friend support on the negative effects of job engagement for married couples
Journal of Vocational BehaviorCarlson, D. S., Thompson, M. J., & Hackney, K. J., Crawford, W.
2021
Book Chapter: Invisible Grief: An Examination of Miscarriage in the Workplace
Stress and Quality of Working LifeHackney, K. J., Wu, C., & Nuner, J.
2020
Book Chapter: Examining the role of pregnancy in work organizations: implications for the well-being of the mother and baby
Research in Personnel and Human Resources ManagementHackney, K. J. & Perrewé, P. L.
2018
