problem 5 - job satisfaction

Question 1

what is the hawthorne effect?

Answer 1

the modification of behavior in response to the knowledge that one is being observed or singled out for special treatment

Question 2

what is the global approach to satisfaction?

Answer 2

JS is one’s general feeling towards the job – org success should lead to increased general satisfaction

Question 3

what is the facet approach to satisfaction?

Answer 3

emphasis on different facets of the job – provides a more complete view of job satisfaction
- E.g. someone may get along well with their colleagues but still believe salary is too low

Question 4

what is the job descriptive index (JDI)?

Answer 4

JS scale that assesses 5 facets:
- Work, pay, promotion opportunities, supervision & coworkers
- Found to be very valid but only has 5 sub scales = might not cover all facets

Question 5

what is the minnesota satisfaction questionnaire (MSQ)?

Answer 5

a JS scale that comes in a long (100 items) & short (20 items) version
– short form measures overall S: extrinsic (pay, benefits, etc.) + intrinsic (nature of work) satisfaction
- long form measures facets

Question 6

what are the situational/environmental antecedents of job satisfaction?

Answer 6

(influential) job characteristics (theory): skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy & feedback
- These factors make up the scope (complexity) of a job – a high scope leads to JS, depending on GNS

pay: is associated to an extent with global S but more strongly related to facet of pay S
- Equity is a more imp determinant of pay S
- When 2 ppl do the same work, the person who is paid more is also more satisfied
- higher correlation between distributive justice & salary S than between procedural justice & salary S

Question 7

what are personal antecedents of job satisfaction?

Answer 7

personality: some people are predetermined/susceptible to liking or disliking their jobs (chronic kickers)
- There is little knowledge about the exact traits that influence JS besides negative affectivity & locus of control

gender: no difference

age: older worker are more satisfied w their jobs
- JS decreases around 26-31 then steadily increase again – dip could indicate tediousness – when someone gets a new job, it often goes up

culture/ethnicity: POC are usually less satisfied

Question 8

what is negative affectivity?

Answer 8

the tendency of an individual to exp neg emotions (e.g., anxiety & depression)
– when someone has a high NA score they often have low JS

Question 9

what are ‘chronic kickers’?

Answer 9

people who continually complain about their job

Question 10

what is locus of control?

Answer 10

People’s beliefs about their ability to control reinforcements in their env
- Internals = ppl who believe they can control reinforcements – have higher level of job motivation & S than externals (don’t believe)

Question 11

what is the person-job fit?

Answer 11

suggests that JS occurs when there is a good match between a person & a job
– often measured by asking what ppl want in their careers & what they actually have/receive
- The smaller the discrepancy between these indicators, the larger the JS
- One moderator is GNS – low GNS will have constant S regardless of job scope, but high GNS depends on job scope

Question 12

what is a moderator variable?

Answer 12

determines the strength of 2 correlated variables
- E.g., different people react differently to different job characteristics

Question 13

what are the 7 models of the JS/JP relationship?

Answer 13

1. JS causes JP - very little evidence
2. JP causes JS - slightly more evidence
3. JS & JP are reciprocally related
4. relationship between JS & JP is spurious
   - spurious = when the relationship between 2 variables is due to the relation of these variables to a 3rd, unmeasured variable
5. relationship between JS & JP is moderated by other variables
6. there is no relationship
7. alternative conceptualization of JS and/or JP
   - in response to apparently low S-P relationship: some researchers recast the hypothesis in terms of the relationship between emotions and performance

Question 14

what is the relationship between ability & task performance

Answer 14

The more mentally demanding the job, the stronger the relation between cog ability & JP
- Employees whose abilities matched their jobs are more satisfied
- Supports idea that JP might lead to JS

Question 15

what is the relationship between the big 5 & task performance

Answer 15

studies have found relations between each of the 5 dimensions & task P, w conscientiousness being the best predictor

Question 16

what is the relationship between job characteristics & task performance (psychological states)

Answer 16

• When work is interesting & enjoyable, ppl will like their job, be highly motivated & perform well
• Features of jobs induce psychological states that lead to S, M & P
• The job features lead to 3 psychological states (meaningfulness, responsibility & knowledge of results) – are critical to the S & M of employees

Question 17

what is growth need strength?

Answer 17

a personality variable that concerns the need for fulfillment of higher-order needs (e.g., personal growth, autonomy & achievement)

Question 18

what is the spillover hypothesis (job & life satisfaction)

Answer 18

(dis)satisfaction in one area will improve/worsen S in other = positive correlation
- E.g., if you are happy at home, you will be happy at work. If you are unhappy at home, you will be unhappy at work
- Supported by research

Question 19

what is the compensation hypothesis (job & life satisfaction)

Answer 19

if someone is dissatisfied in one are, they will try to gain satisfaction from another area of life – negative correlation
- E.g., if they are unhappy at home, they will work harder at work to gain S

Question 20

what is the segmentation hypothesis (job & life satisfaction)

Answer 20

S in one area does not influence satisfaction in another area of life – no correlation

Question 21

what is organizational citizenship behavior? (aka contextual performance)

Answer 21

behavior that goes beyond the core task requirements of the job & is typically beneficial to the org

2 categories of behavior: those that are specifically required & those that are not
- Altruism = helping another employee or supervisor w a problem, even though it is not required
- Compliance = doing what needs to be done & following rules

Question 22

what is counterproductive work behavior?

Answer 22

behaviors that harm the org & other ppl at work – e.g., withdrawal, aggression &stealing

Question 23

what are withdrawal behaviors?

Answer 23

employees not being at work when scheduled or needed, either temporarily or permanently- e.g. lateness, absence & quitting (turnover)
- Absence & turnover may be alternative reactions to job dissatisfaction – reflect attempts to escape from situations they find unpleasant

Question 24

what is organizational commitment

Answer 24

Is strongly related to JS, but is different in focusing on the attachment of the individual to the org rather than whether they like the job

2 perspectives: global & component
- Global = considers OC to be a global feeling that involves: an acceptance of the org’s goals, a willingness to work hard for the org & the desire to stay with the org
- Component = there are 3 components of commitment

Question 25

what are the 3 components of commitment?

Answer 25

Affective commitment = occurs when the employee wishes to remain with the org bcuz of emotional attachment
– arises from job conditions + met expectations

Continuance commitment = when a person must remain with the org bcuz they need the benefits & salary or cannot find another acceptable job
– arises from benefits accrued + jobs available

Normative commitment = comes from values of the employee – they believe they owe it to the org to remain
– arise from personal values + felt obligations