Job Satisfaction
Abstract
The issue of Job Satisfaction, Motivation in the workplace and the role of Job
Characteristics have been the cause of intensive research for many years now and have
given rise to many theories, formed on the basis of extended research by psychologists,
social scientists and HRD managers.
The concept of job satisfaction, though of considerably recent origin, is closely linked to
motivation in the workplace and is a causal factor in improved performance in the
workplace. These issues are again linked to Job Characteristics, which primarily describe
the inherent features of a job, which can again motivate or demotivate workers, and whose
tweaking can thus change a the inherent motivational features of the job.
During recent times an impression has been gaining ground that all is not well with the
satisfaction and motivational levels of workers in British business, a fact that is also borne
out to a certain extent by recent surveys.
It is the purpose of this research assignment to delve deeply into the matter and investigate
all the above areas as well as linked developments. This will enable the establishment of
causal relationships between these variables and possibly enable the research come up with
fresh perspectives and practicable effective solutions for the improvement of worker
satisfaction and national productivity.
Contents
Serial Description Page
A Introduction 3
1 Background 3
2 Statement and Significance of Research Problems 5
3 Research Questions 7
4 Purpose of Study 8
5 Limitations of Study 9
B Literature Review 10
1 Current Thinking on Employee Motivation 11
2 The Importance of Job Characteristics 18
3 Harassment in the Workplace 21
4 Effect of Use of Computers on Job Satisfaction 23
5 Improvement in Job Satisfaction 24
6 Current Levels of Job Satisfaction in the UK 28
C Research Design and Methodology 31
1 Research Statement 31
2 Choice of Analytical Approach 32
3 Choice of Information Scenario 36
4 Population and Sampling 36
5 Data Collection 37
6 Data Analysis 42
References 43
A. Introduction
1. Background
The worth of employees in the running of organizations has been analyzed and debated by
management experts, sociologists and psychologists in depth and detail. A number of
theories, most of them the result of painstaking and detailed research, are in use to explain
human psychology in the workplace, the stressors and destressors of a working
environment, and the reasons behind employee performance, or for that matter, the lack of
it.
For all practical purposes, employee satisfaction is essential for corporate success and all
famous leaders of corporate enterprise apparently were also exceptional leaders of men.
Low attrition rates in companies is an indication of stable and employee friendly HR
policy and a barometer of corporate well being. The onset of higher employee turnover
brings with it indications of difficult times ahead and is considered as a serious competitive
disadvantage by business and financial analysts.
The issue of job characteristics and employee satisfaction has been looked at from a
number of perspectives. One view, which is followed by many, is the importance of
money. A number of employers feel that in todays multiple opportunity, flexi choice, work
from home environment, money is the basic reason for a person to take up a job,
furthermore that people work only for money. Companies that pay more usually get the
most applications be it at college graduation time for new entrants to the work force, or
later on for mid career shifts for middle and senior people. This school of thought feels
very strongly that employees join organizations, work and leave only for monetary
considerations and all other reasons, which involve non-monetary factors like challenging
assignments, caring environments, recognition and open communication channels are
nothing more than idle talk and blandishment, meant to cover up the stigma associated
with behaviour that is mercenary and devoid of any other so called redeeming features.
There are again many management experts and HRD specialists who feel that the theory of
money being the only real choice in an employment choice in a free market situation has
many serious limitations and indeed is deeply flawed. These experts feel that while money
is an important factor in the contemplation of an employment decision there are a number
of other factors, which also influence such choices.
The truth is far more complex and while the cynical continue to believe in the
overwhelming supremacy of money, in its power to buy happiness and satisfaction, be it in
personal life or the workplace, a number of management thinkers, social scientists and
corporate managers feel otherwise, advocating and using distinctly different HR
philosophies and policies.
These include the understanding of need hierarchies like Abraham Maslows theory of
needs and Clayton Alderfers ERG theory of motivation, the thinking of Herzeberger and
McClelland and the various theories of goal setting and motivational processes. A number
of organizations base their HR practces upon an understanding of these various theories
and their adaptation to the business environment. Another variable which has come to
occupy a permanent factor in HR policy making is employee reaction to the comparatively
new practice of having to spend a significant part of working time in front of laptops and
computer screens, be it any job profile, such is the pervasiveness of Information
Technology in all areas of corporate life.
In the UK the ocurrence of bullying in the workplace has been drawing the attention of
corporate managements and sociologists for the last few years. It is today thought to be
one of the main causes of stress in the workplace and results in a number of adverse effects
upon the physical and mental well being of employees and is a perceived job characteristic
in a number of workplaces.
It is an undeniable fact that the future of business enterprise depends upon the satisfaction
level of its workforce. Dissatisfied workforces cause immediate problems only to their
particular busineses. However, if these problems are left inadequately attended they have a
tendency to spiral out including other businesses, industries and regions harming
relationships, productivity, profits and finally also the creation of national wealth.
2. Statement and Significance of Research Problems
Employee satisfaction is thought to be one of the primary requirements of a well run
organization and considered an imperative by all corporate managements. The last five
years of globalisation, the rise of the Chinese economy as the worlds cheapest
manufacturing destination, the gradual pervasiveness of the internet and the emergence of
outsourcing on a global scale have shaken up years of corporate practices in both
manufacturing and service sectors of the economy.
The challenges faced by HR departments have accordingly increased manifold as
businesses try to adjust and to and use the new economic realities to their advantage. In the
UK the shift from manufacturing to service has resulted in the a huge change in the nature
of skills required and available and the country has made rapid progress to becoming a
high end service economy, home to top class skills in many service areas, notably finance,
investments and banking. The shift in the nature of jobs has also led to a change in job
characteristics and in the functional tools used for carrying out jobs.
There has been a good deal of expression of concern about the lesser than desired rate of
growth of the British economy and whether the levels of job satisfaction as also the
appropriateness of particular workers for specific functions could have a bearing on the
total economic performance of the country. The various characteristics of particular jobs
play a major role in providing job satisfaction to the worker. It has always been accepted
that job satisfaction leads to the generation of company loyalty and lower satisfaction
levels lead to attrition and higher turnover.
It can thus well be that job satisfaction levels could be an area where improvement of
conditions could result in benefits for the national economy.
The following issues are thus significant in definition of the problem
Organisational growth needs an exposition of dissatisfiers in the workplace
Placement of right personnel in appropriate positions is necessary for optimising
performance
Dissatisfied employees are unlikely to perform well at their jobs
Communication between management and employees, articulation of job characteristics
that improve motivation and implementation of measures to introduce necessary job
characteristics will help in increasing employee performance
3. Research Questions
The appropriate way to conduct this specific research assignment would be to start with
the framing of a set of research questions that would determine the general direction of this
research effort. The research questions are now defined as follows.
Do job characteristics have any bearing on the job satisfaction levels experienced by
workers?
Does job satisfaction result in better corporate performance?
What are the reasons that result in job satisfaction in the corporate workplace?
What could be the stressors and demotivators, both external and internal which, when
perceived as job characteristics could lead to lower levels of job satisfaction?
What could be possible motivators that could result in increased levels of job satisfaction?
Has the ubiquitous and ever increasing presence of IT and the internet changed the job
characteristics and the levels of job satisfaction in the workplace?
Is harassment in the workplace a cause of dissatisfaction and demotivation?
Have recent international developments in business and economics affected levels of job
satisfaction in the UK?
Is the situation regarding satisfaction at the workplace worrying in the national context?
