Job Satisfaction

The article that I chose listed the following information as it related to employee job satisfaction. A causal analysis suggests that performance is more likely to cause satisfaction than vice versa (a productive worker is a happy worker). It should be noted that some moderators of the job satisfaction - job performance relationship have been found. Specifically, the strength of the correlation between satisfaction and performance depends on performance-reward contingencies: higher correlations have been found when rewards are strongly tied to performance.

It was also noted that job attitudes are highly stable across situations, indicating a dispositional influence.

In their study, they examined the correlation of job satisfaction ratings of workers over various time intervals (controlling for changes in employers and occupations).

Observed test-retest correlations: (Job tenure)

1 month: .71

1 year: .57

3-5 years: .30-.40

This was taken as evidence that job attitudes are more a function of the person, than the situation. Finding out what really matters to employees so the company can maximize its investment in human capital is not an incidental undertaking. There are costs involved in doing surveys and in analyzing their results, and there are additional costs if an organization doesn't show that it values the effort.

An example of evolution in employee surveys can be drawn from a decision by The Conference Board. The organization started a new line of inquiry after earlier surveys showed continuing declines in job satisfaction among U.S. workers, especially among workers 35 to 44 years old--those poised to move into corporate leadership ranks in the coming decade. "This declining satisfaction has prompted us to begin research around employee engagement and satisfaction," says Barrington.

References:

http://www.shrm.org/hrmagazine/articles/0405/0405covstory.asp

http://www.albany.edu/psy/courses/341/iyer/lect/mar16.html