Theories Of Job Satisfaction

Question 1

Theory of job satisfaction 1

Answer 1

Two-factor theory (Herzberg, 1959)

1. States that job satisfaction and job dissatisfaction work independently of each other, i.e., there are certain factors which cause satisfaction and there are other factors which cause dissatisfaction.
2. Herzberg begins by stating that workers are not satisfied with jobs or roles which simply meet their lower order needs (physiological and safety needs according to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs).
   > Proposes that individuals also look for the gratification of higher-level needs such as relatedness or self-esteem needs.
   > These are likely to be met by the nature of the work itself (rather than the lower-level needs which may be met primarily through the fact that one is paid for the work that one does).
3. Although there are many obvious overlaps between this theory and Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, Herzberg has added a further dimension to his theory by suggesting that one group of job characteristics leads to worker satisfaction whilst another, completely separate group of job characteristics leads to worker dissatisfaction.
   > This is an interesting suggestion as it is likey that most people would assume that satisfaction and dissatisfaction are on a continuum, from satisfied to dissatisfied, rather than being completed entities.
4. Herzberg conducted over 200 interviews with engineers and accountants in the Pittsburgh area.
   > He chose these professions as they were developing in importance in the business world at the time that he conducted his research.
   > He asked them to describe periods in their lives when they were ‘exceedingly happy’ and ‘exceedingly unhappy’ with their jobs.
   > Interviewees were asked to give as much information as they could with specific focus on the changes that took place.
   > Results:
   » He found that factors related to the job itself could make people feel a sense of achievement and thus a sense of satisfaction.
   »> If the job did not have any of these gratifying characteristics, this did not lead to dissatisfaction.
   » Dissatisfaction results from very different factors, such as working conditions, technical problems and salary levels.
   » This means that these two factors need to be considered separately - increasing satisfaction is not the same thing as decreasing dissatisfaction.
5. Finally, Herzberg’s two-factor theory distinguishes between motivators and hygiene factors.
   > Motivators are the factors that produce satisfaction such as challenging and rewarding work, responsibility and autonomy, recognition and the sense that one is doing something meaningful and important.
   » These produce satisfaction but their absence does not lead to dissatisfaction.
   > Hygiene factors include things like job security, salary, working conditions, benefits such as paid holidays and insurance.
   » These do not contribute to the feeling of satisfaction but their absence can contribute to a feeling of dissatisfaction.
6. Therefore, in order to remove dissatisfaction in a work environment, these hygiene factors must be addressed.
   > There are several ways that this can be done but some of the most important ways to decrease dissatisfaction would be to pay reasonable wages, ensure employees job security, and to create a positive culture in the workplace.
   > However, eliminating dissatisfaction is only one-half of the task of the two-factor theory, and increasing satisfaction can be done by improving on motivating factors.
7. Two-factor theory produces 4 possible combinations of these two factors:
   A. High motivators, High hygiene
   > The ideal situation, where employees are highly motivated and have few complaints.
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   B. Low motivators, High hygiene
   > Employees have few complaints but are not highly motivated.
   > The job is viewed as a pay-packet.
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   C. High motivators, low hygiene
   > Employees are motivated but have a lot of complaints.
   > A situation where the job is exciting and challenging but salaries and work conditions are not up to par.
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   D. Low motivators, low hygiene
   > This is the worst situation, where employees are not motivated and have many complaints.

Question 2

Theory of job satisfcation 2

Answer 2

Job characteristics theory (Hackman and Oldham, 1976)

1. A theory that can be used to create jobs that appeal to workers and keep them motivated.
2. 5 key factors described in the model as ‘core job characteristics’ are identified:
   A. Skill variety
   > A job that motivates workers should require different skills and utilise a range of skills that the worker has.
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   B. Task identity
   > A job that motivates workers should require the completion of a whole piece of work rather than a disjointed element.
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   C. Task significance
   > The job should have an impact on other people, either inside or outside the organisation.
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   D. Autonomy
   > The job should allow the worker some autonomy in planning, scheduling and carrying out their work.
   > This will obviously be easier in some jobs than others but even a small level of autonomy can increase motivation for a low level job.
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   E. Feedback
   > The job itself (rather than other people) should provide information on how well the worker is performing the job.
   > This can increase motivation.
3. These produce 3 critical psychological states which collectively, are thought to impact 3 outcomes: motivation, satisfaction and work performance.
   A. Skill variety, task identity, task significance
   > Critical Psychological State: Meaningfulness
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   B. Autonomy
   > CPS: Responsibility
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   C. Feedback from job
   > CPS: Knowledge of results
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   Outcomes:
   > work motivation
   > growth satisfaction
   > general satisfaction
   > work effectiveness

Question 3

Theory of job satisfaction 3

Answer 3

Techniques of job design

1. 3 further techniques of job design can be used once a job has started that will also allow for increased satisfaction and motivation in workers.
   A. Job enrichment
   > Involves giving workers a greater variety of tasks to perform which in turn, increases the level of skills and responsibility that they are working at.
   > This gives workers a greater sense of control over their job and makes the job more interesting.
   > In turn, this will increase motivation and satisfaction.
   > This is obviously easier to put into practice in some organisations than others.
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   B. Job rotation
   > Workers have regular changes of tasks within their normal role.
   > For example in a kitchen, workers could rotate around all the different preparation areas; in a large supermarket, workers could rotate between departments and between tasks within these departments.
   > This shoud have the effect of producing variety and stopping workers from becoming too bored by one task.
   > An additional benefit is the increased skills of the workers meaning that they can be placed in several places within the organisation dependent on need.
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   C. Job enlargement
   > Can be horizontal or vertical.
   > Horizontal job enlargement inolves giving workers more tasks to do but usually at the same level.
   » This will increase variety.
   > Vertical job enlargement involves the addition of further decision making responsibilities and/or higher level, more challenging tasks (Arnold).
   » This will not only increase variety but also the workers’ competence and sense of empowerment.
   > For example, someone is not given a formal promotion or increase in status but they are given more freedom to do their job in the way that they see fit.
   > Another example is allowing teams to manage themselves.

Question 4

Evaluation

Answer 4

1. Application in everyday life (Herzberg)
   > The practical application of Herzberg’s models is that those in charge of organisations must focus on increasing those characteristics which produce worker satisfaction and on decreasing those factors that produce worker dissatisfaction rather than assuming that they are the same thing.
   > Although this may seem obvious, Herzberg made a significant contribution to organisational psychology when he drew a clear distinction between factors which create satisfaction and fators which create dissatisfaction.
   > If a manager wishes to increase satisfaction, he or she should focus on factors related to the nature of the work itself, including the promotion prospects, opportunities for gaining responsibility or for working autonomously and, in Maslow’s terms, achieving self-actualisation.
   > If workers are dissatisfied, then the manager needs to focus on different factors, including policies, procedures, supervision and general working conditions.
   » Obviously a focus on both would be ideal.
   > Although this is a theorectical model, it is based on interviews with over 200 participants, which is a large enough sample to generalise from and enough data to support the predictions made in the model.
2. Application in everyday life (Hackman and Oldham)
   > Hackman and Olham’s Job Characteristics Theory identify the core job characteristics that produce critical psychological states, which in turn affect motivation, satisfaction and work performance.
   » By doing this, we can begin to design jobs around these characteristics.
   > Not surprisingly, this model has generated a great deal of research.
   » It provides precise, testable hypotheses and there have been several studies which demonstrates that the core characteristics do correlate with motivation and satisfaction.
   > However, Arnold et al. note that it is surprising that there have been very few attempts to experimentally manipulate jobs so that they have more of the core job characteristics.
   > Of those that have been done, findings suggest that changes to job characteristics have an impact on satisfaction and motivation rather than work performance.
3. Individual-situational debate
   > Even relatively small changes to the job characteristics (situation) can impact on the individual and their attitudes.
4. Final section on techniques of job design brings these two theories together as they demonstrate the many ways in which jobs can be redesigned and the effects that this can have.
   > Although this is not a report of a piece of research, it is clear that all of these techniques could be implemented in real-life situations and their effects measured.
5. However, given that this research would be either a field experiment or a quasi-experiment, the researchers would need to take great care in interpreting their findings (see Hawthorne effect).