Measurement of Job Satisfaction
As workers grow older, they tend to be slightly more satisfied with their jobs, apparently they have lower their expectations to more realistic levels and adjust themselves better to their work situations. People with high level occupations tend to be more satisfied with their jobs. As we might expect they are usually better paid, have better working conditions, and hold jobs that make fuller use of their abilities. Finally, there is some evidence to suggest that levels of job satisfaction are higher in smaller organizational units (such as a branch plant). This is because larger organizations tend to whelm people, disrupt supportive progresses, and limit the amount of personal closeness, friendship and small group team work that are important to the satisfaction of many people.
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Following three basic techniques that are used for job satisfaction studies.
1. Projective Survey
It is one of the survey techniques for interpreting job satisfaction. These devices are personality probes developed by psychiatrists and psychologists for studying metal health. The projective technique presents an abstraction that is incomplete and meaningless. The employees project that abstraction into completeness by describing what it means for them. This technique projects new and creative thinking that employees and management may draw results out of such projections.
2. Objective Survey
In objective survey, a questionnaire is prepared with questions and their multiple choice answers. The respondents read all answers of each questions and mark the answer which is nearest to their feelings. The answers may be either marked tick on "True" and "False" or written numerical value of the answer given in the space provided. The multiple choice answers are suggested by the management or surveyors.
The main advantage of this type of survey is that they are easy to administer and to analyze statistically. Computers may be used to analyze the data. The chief defect of this type of survey is that the answers are written by the management, employees are to select and mark only one out of the several answers given which is nearest to their feelings. It is not always a true expression of their feelings.
3. Descriptive Survey
Just contrary to objective survey, employees are given the opportunity to express their opinions in details about the questions set by the management in descriptive surveys. The questions may pertain to their job or the organization such as "What do you think about pension schemes of the company?" the questions may be direct or indirect. Direct questions focus attention of the employee on a specific part of their job and the surveyor asks questions about that part. Indirect questions give employees a full opportunity to express their feelings about their job such as "What do you think about your job?"
The descriptive survey may be written or oral applying interview techniques. Sometimes it may be a combination of the two techniques – written followed by interview and more questions may be asked during interview explaining their view point explicitly. The main advantage of this type of survey is that management comes across the true feelings of the employees regarding their jobs in a descriptive manner.
Effects of Job Satisfaction on Employee's Performance
Job satisfaction significantly contributes to employee performance especially in productivity and morale. Therefore, an industrial organization can be effectively benefited if it cares to develop general individuals, attitude in its employees that individuals, attitude in its employees that can effectively contribute to job satisfaction. Mostly, there is positive relationship between increase in job satisfaction and increase in employee's performance. But relationship between them is the sequence of relationship which is affected by economical, sociological, psychological and some other factors.
From the above figure, the sequence of relationship is that better performance typically leads to higher economic, sociological and psychological rewards. If these rewards are seen as fair and equitable, the improved satisfaction develops because employees feel that they are receiving rewards in proportion to higher performance. On the other hand, if rewards are seen as inadequate for one's level of performance, dissatisfaction tends to rise. In either case, one's level of satisfaction leads to either greater or lesser commitment, which then affects efforts and eventually performance again.
Factor Affecting Job Satisfaction
Job satisfaction is a set of favorable or unfavorable feelings which the employees view their work. Job satisfaction is a feeling of relative pleasure or pain. It typically refers to the attitudes of a single employee. An employee’s overall satisfaction with his job is the result of a combination of factors and financial compensation is only one of them. Management’s role in enhancing employee’s job satisfaction is to make sure the work environment is positive, morale is high and employees have the resources they need to accomplish the tasks they have been assigned.
There are different factors that affect job satisfaction as shown in figure:
1. Remuneration and Rewards
The type of linkage that is provided between job performance and rewards determines the degree of job satisfaction. If the reward is perceived to be based on the job performance and equitable, it offers higher satisfaction. If the reward is perceived to be based on considerations other than the job performance, it affects job satisfaction adversely.
2. Working Condition
Working conditions, particularly physical work environment like conditions of workplace and associated facilities for performing the job determine job satisfaction. These work in two ways. First these provide means for job performance. Second, provision of these conditions affects the individual perception about the organization. If these factors are favorable, individuals experience higher level of job satisfaction.
3. Job Content
Job content refers to the intrinsic value of the job which depends on the requirement of skills for performing it, and the degree of responsibility and growth it offers. A higher content of these factors provides higher satisfaction. For example, a routine and repetitive job provides lessen satisfaction: the degree of satisfaction progressively increases in job rotation, job enlargement and job enrichment.
4. Promotion
It is true that individual seek satisfaction in their jobs in the context of job nature and work environment but they also attach importance to the opportunities for promotion that these jobs offer. If the present job offers opportunity of promotion in future, it provides more satisfaction. If the opportunity for such promotion is lacking, it reduces satisfaction.
5. Supervision
The type of supervision affects job satisfaction. As in each type of supervision, the degree of importance attached to individuals varies. In employee oriented supervision, there is more concern for people which is perceived favorably by them and provides them more satisfaction. In job oriented supervision, there is more emphasis on the performance of the job and people become secondary. This situation decreases job satisfaction.
6. Occupation Level
Higher level jobs provide more satisfaction as compared to lower levels do. This happens because higher level jobs carry prestige and status in the society which itself becomes source of satisfaction for the job holders. For example, professionals derive more satisfaction as compared to salaried people, factory workers are least satisfied.
7. Work Group
Individuals work in group either created formally or they develop on their own to seek emotional satisfaction at the workplace to the extent, such groups are cohesive, the degree of satisfaction is high. If the group is not cohesive, job satisfaction is low as compared to that of cohesive group. People derive satisfaction out of their interpersonal interaction and workplace becomes satisfying leading to job satisfaction.
8. Level of Education
Level of education of an individual is a factor which determines the degree of job satisfaction. For example, several studies have found negative correlation between the level of education, particularly higher level of education, and job satisfaction. The possible reason for this phenomenon may be that highly educated persons have very high expectations from their jobs which remain unsatisfied in their case.
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