Job satisfaction describes how content an individual is with his or her job. It is a relatively recent term since in previous centuries the jobs available to a particular person were often predetermined by the occupation of that person’s parent. There are a variety of factors that can influence a person’s level of job satisfaction; some of these factors include the level of pay and benefits, the perceived fairness of the promotion system within a company, the quality of the working conditions, leadership and social relationships, and the job itself (the variety of tasks involved, the interest and challenge the job generates, and the clarity of the job description/requirements).
The happier people are within their job, the more satisfied they are said to be. Job satisfaction is not the same as motivation, although it is clearly linked. Job design aims to enhance job satisfaction and performance; methods include job rotation, job enlargement and job enrichment. Other influences on satisfaction include the management style and culture, employee involvement, empowerment and autonomous work groups. Job satisfaction is a very important attribute which is frequently measured by organizations. One of the biggest preludes to the study of job satisfaction was the Hawthorne studies, done by Elton Mayo of the Harvard Business School, sought to find the effects of various conditions (most notably illumination) on workers’ productivity. These studies ultimately showed that novel changes in work conditions temporarily increase productivity (called the Hawthorne Effect). It was later found that this increase resulted, not from the new conditions, but from the knowledge of being observed. This finding provided strong evidence that people work for purposes other than pay, which paved the way for researchers to investigate other factors in job satisfaction. Employees with higher job satisfaction believe that the organization will be satisfying their needs in the long run, care about the quality of their work, are more committed to the organization, have higher retention rates, and are more productive. Job satisfaction is actually a combination of intrinsic and extrinsic job satisfaction. Intrinsic job satisfaction is when workers consider only the kind of work they do, the tasks that make up the job. Extrinsic job satisfaction is when workers consider the conditions of work, such as their pay, coworkers, and supervisor.
The happier people are within their job, the more satisfied they are said to be. Job satisfaction is not the same as motivation, although it is clearly linked. Job design aims to enhance job satisfaction and performance; methods include job rotation, job enlargement and job enrichment. Other influences on satisfaction include the management style and culture, employee involvement, empowerment and autonomous work groups. Job satisfaction is a very important attribute which is frequently measured by organizations. One of the biggest preludes to the study of job satisfaction was the Hawthorne studies, done by Elton Mayo of the Harvard Business School, sought to find the effects of various conditions (most notably illumination) on workers’ productivity. These studies ultimately showed that novel changes in work conditions temporarily increase productivity (called the Hawthorne Effect). It was later found that this increase resulted, not from the new conditions, but from the knowledge of being observed. This finding provided strong evidence that people work for purposes other than pay, which paved the way for researchers to investigate other factors in job satisfaction. Employees with higher job satisfaction believe that the organization will be satisfying their needs in the long run, care about the quality of their work, are more committed to the organization, have higher retention rates, and are more productive. Job satisfaction is actually a combination of intrinsic and extrinsic job satisfaction. Intrinsic job satisfaction is when workers consider only the kind of work they do, the tasks that make up the job. Extrinsic job satisfaction is when workers consider the conditions of work, such as their pay, coworkers, and supervisor.
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