JOB SATISFACTION: A REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Abstract: Job Satisfaction is all about how a person likes the job. It is actually
more of a journey than being a destination. It is of utmost requirement to
organizations as it will increase the job involvement level of the employees and
decrease the turnover. Job satisfaction has been a fascinating concept for
researchers as well as experts since number of decades. This paper presents
the study of past literatures of job satisfaction between the years 1981 to
2014. The purpose is to find out the different attributes used for evaluating the
job satisfaction. From the review of extant literature, it has been found that it
is always not salary which leads to job satisfaction rather it is the work
environment. Keywords: Job Satisfaction, Attributes, Turnover, Work
environment

Introduction Job Satisfaction is what organizations always focus and with time
it has taken the place of importance. Job satisfaction is all about how a person
likes the job. Today it is a world of competition and when job satisfaction is not
felt by an employee it leads to turnover. Salary is a contributor to job
satisfaction but not always. There are many other factors which help in
achieving job satisfaction. Often, in order to achieve optimum job satisfaction,
organizations undertake several activities, but they fail to meet the expectation
of the employees and result in low job satisfaction. Such situations have always
pondered researchers and practioners with the question what makes
employees satisfied? Hence, organizations are regularly conducting job
satisfaction surveys to understand how much employees are satisfied and
what makes them satisfied. At the same time, researchers are bringing in
different motivational theories and developing different frameworks of job
satisfaction. This review of literature is an attempt to understand the
researches done in this area in couple of years.

Objectives of the Study The major objectives of our review are: I. To explore
the kind of research undertaken and available in the field of job satisfaction. II.
To highlight the gaps existing in the current literature and emphasize upon
important and interesting areas of research herein. III. To establish the
importance of job satisfaction in the organizations.
Methodology of the study: The study is conducted by using secondary data
listed in different databases (goggle and KSOM Library (Emerald-1981-2014
Articles with the key word “Job Satisfaction”). For this purpose articles listed in
the database has been reviewed.

Review of Literature: Savery (1989) highlighted the job satisfaction of nurses

in Perth, Western Australia. The job satisfaction level of the nurses was mainly
due to interesting and challenging work which was followed by a feeling of
achievement wherein, he even said salary was ranked as a very low satisfier.
The job satisfaction level increased as the person grew old where in the
variables like gender, time in hospital, position held were controlled.
Organizations should always focus on satisfying the three basic needs
(Individual motivators, Employee relationships and personal relationships) of
an employee which will in return help the employees in achieving job
satisfaction.

Melvin (1993) stated that the environmental design of an organization plays a

very important role in job satisfaction at the same time it also plays an
important role in employees high job involvement. A good environmental
design of an organization helps in resolving the conflicts and confusion. The
author even cites that it is the responsibility of the management to design the
environment in such a manner that it reduces the dissatisfaction where in the
work tasks, working patterns are properly mentioned. MacDermid(1999)
studied the job satisfaction level of workaholics. He said there are six variables
of workaholic patterns i.e. Workaholics, Enthusiastic Workaholics, Work
Enthusiastic, Unengaged Workers, Relaxed Workers and Disenchanted
Workers. The job satisfaction level and career satisfaction level was much
more in Enthusiastic Workaholics , Work Enthusiastic, Relaxed Workers than
Workaholics, Unengaged Workers and Disenchanted Workers because of the
future career prospects, working involvement, drive and work enjoyment.
Beumont (1982) in his article highlights the job satisfaction level of general
household in United States & Britain where in there is a close fit relationship in
U.S than Britain. In the study he found that in U.S there is a positive
relationship between Job Satisfaction and Age where as in Britain it was
considerably low. Partridge (1981) studied the job satisfaction level of women
in Britain in which he found that the job satisfaction level of women was more
as compared with black men, as they normally have low expectations from
their jobs. At the same time they have a greater feeling that the alternative
jobs available to them differs very less than those available to them. Saari &
Judge (2004) discussed on employee attitudes leading to job satisfaction. The
employee attitude is related to the job, when a person has a liking towards to
the job the satisfaction level increases there by increasing the organization
performance as in a whole. Savery (1987) highlights the effect of motivators on
job satisfaction. He states intrinsic motivators’ helps in achieving job
satisfaction. The study says stress being one of the major reason leading to
dissatisfaction therefore it has to be taken care of properly to reduce the level
of dissatisfaction. The immediate supervisor is the person who has a major
influence on job satisfaction. The supervisor helps in increasing the satisfaction
level by offering more of intrinsic motivators like challenging work and career
development to the subordinates and he is the one who provides the most
tangible assistance to the subordinate. Singh & Jain (2013) highlights on
employees job satisfaction and its impact on their performance. Employees’
attitude reflects the moral of the company. Happy employees play an
important role in the areas of customers’ service and sales as they are the one
to interact with the customer on a daily basis. Work environment is the key
factor in job satisfaction. Good work environment and good working conditions
leads to job satisfaction at the same time helps in increasing employee work
performance, profitability, customer satisfaction as well as retention. Tietjen &
Myers (1998) discusses the theories of job satisfaction mentioned by Herzberg
and Lockers. Job Satisfaction is always maximum when an employee is satisfied
with the work which is assigned to him. A well furnished office and the
temperature of the work environment doesn’t help much where as the base
duty allotted in the job and the intrinsic related feelings of an individual
creates a positive attitude in him about the job. Salary, perks always doesn’t
lead to job satisfaction it is the intrinsic feelings of an individual which leads to
job satisfaction. Witte (2012) highlighted on the group differences aspect in job
satisfaction. The study was done on the banking sector in Belgium. A model
was created for testing the hypothesis .The model was “Job Demand Control
support” and the analysis found says that job demand(It is a psychology which
says the job requires certain capabilities)have the highest effect in explaining
satisfaction in relation to the working conditions and less in relation to
explaining satisfaction with job content. Omey (2007) discusses the
relationship between educational level and job satisfaction. He says though
there is a relationship it also says that there is no relationship as well. Higher
educated workers are always satisfied in comparison with the lower educated
workers, the fact being higher educated people obtain a job of better quality.
He adds lower educated workers can also have higher level of job satisfaction
from the psychological benefits of a “good job”. Quality of jobs offered to the
employees differs with the educational level leading to different degree of job
satisfaction. Job characteristics have a big role as here one gets a scope to use
his or her own skills. Therefore the author suggests that organizations should
focus more on job quality than educational level. Oshagbemi (1997) highlights
on the effect of ranking on the job satisfaction level of UK academicians. Rank
increases the job satisfaction level of the academics. Based on the analysis it
was found that gender and rank have direct impact on the level of job
satisfaction of university teachers. Female academics in the ranks of senior
lecturer, reader and professor were more satisfied than men in the same rank.
Female academics were found to be more satisfied in regard to pay,
promotion, physical conditions/working facilities than men. Kumari and
Pandey (2011) states that public sector and private sector both are equally
important for any nation and these two are the basic requirement for any
nation to prosper and grow. Here the job satisfaction level was tested in
relation to job ambivalence (the state of having mixed feelings or contradictory
ideas about something). Higher performance rating was given to the supervisor
when the job ambivalence faced by the employees is less and vice-e-versa. Job
satisfaction and performance has no relation when the job ambivalence
increases towards the job. Therefore, organizations should focus on bringing
clarity to the employees about their work, the process to be followed for the
better understanding of the job. Seniwoliba A.J. (2013) studies the job
satisfaction level of teachers in public senior high school in the Temale
Metropolis of Ghana and it was found that extrinsic factors i.e. salary,
incentives, working conditions, security (Medical allowance and future pension
benefits) motivates the employees and helps in achieving job satisfaction
effectively. Salary and working conditions play a larger role in job satisfaction
and by enlarge organizations should focus on it always and take steps for
improving it. Equal pay for equal rank has to be preached by organizations. Nir
(2012) studies the importance of teachers’ perceived organizational support on
Job Satisfaction. There are two aspects to satisfaction mainly intrinsic and
extrinsic. Earned status and respect are those of the extrinsic factors which
plays an important role in employee satisfaction. Self-efficacy as an intrinsic
factor helps as it promotes individual self-fulfillment. When organization value
its employees contribution, cares about their well being then employees are
satisfied intrinsically and extrinsically. Aristovnik (2014) discusses influence of
organizational and environmental factors on employee job satisfaction. The
police employees rated salary and security as the least motivator and support
from the management as high. Police employees rate trust and belongingness
as the key factor to job satisfaction. Austin (2007) mentions “Self-fulfillment”,
“Independence” and “Job environment” are the key reasons to managers’ job
satisfaction in Cyprus. Good pay, highly skilled subordinates, growth
opportunities relates to self-fulfillment. Employers should focus on these three
factors i.e. the demographic variables (age, gender, number of years in the
organization, public or private sector, number of employees supervised)
independence in work and the work environment to make the system flow
flawlessly leading to job satisfaction. Ingram (1992) states that job satisfaction
is related to work, co-workers, promotion, pay, supervision relates to customer
orientation. In service industry front line people are the one who interact with
the customers on a regular basis and influence the customer perception by
their behaviors as well as the appearance of the product /service knowledge.
Promotion is a key factor in job satisfaction. It is the duty of the manger to
monitor and improve the employee satisfaction level related to supervision
quality, working conditions, intrinsic compensations and benefits and company
policies so that it helps in achieving the desired level of satisfaction within the
employees. Hawley (2008) discusses on the beginning teachers job satisfaction
level and factors influencing their level of satisfaction. Teachers are be found
to be satisfied with their job and the factors which lead to their job satisfaction
were academic proficiency ,race, socioeconomic status, teaching license and if
their mother was a teacher. Teaching license plays a getter role here as it
shows the necessary skills and knowledge required for teaching and which the
teacher posses. Antvor(2010) discusses the influence of national culture on the
national job satisfaction level and at the same time he also discusses its effect
on other evaluations of job related aspects. They state that although cultural
influence was there in national job satisfaction, all job aspects of job
satisfaction were not cultural context specific. Management has to be careful
while comparing the results from a cross-national job satisfaction study.
Oshagbemi (1997) highlighted on the characteristics of job satisfaction of UK
university teachers. It grouped the university teachers into three categories i.e.
“Happy”, “Satisfied”, “Unhappy”. Satisfied workers had higher job satisfaction
level as they enjoyed their primary functions of teaching & research. Their
satisfaction with organizational facilities was also very high. On the other hand,
unsatisfied categories of workers were dissatisfied on all these aspects. This
limitation can be reduced by the management of the organization by taking
appropriate steps in reducing the dissatisfaction and giving a comfort level and
a sense of belongingness to the employees in the organization and ultimately
achieving job satisfaction leading to more job involvement. Zaki (2003)
explains the job satisfaction and performance of Lebanese banking non-
managerial staff. The researcher found a significant relationship between job
satisfaction and gender in relation to pay and supervision. Only satisfied people
in the organization perform and it is the duty and responsibility of the
organization to take proper care of them. Female employees were more
satisfied with the salary whereas male employees were more satisfied with the
supervision. The author even says at times this may not be relevant because
self-ratings are inflated and generally colleagues’ performance is under rated.
Warn (2003) highlighted on work place dimensions leading to stress &
eventually reducing job satisfaction. Stress is generally experienced due to loss
of control of the desired outcomes of the job. Stress is felt at the work place
due to lack of power, role conflict and role ambiguity leading to job
dissatisfaction. The concept of controllability brings in a solution in decreasing
the stress and leading to job satisfaction, wherein an individual brings in a
mindset of expectations and needs which is dependent on the individual’s
aspirations and control over various aspects of work situations. A positive
working atmosphere like positive learning environment or no harassment
environment or not being fearful in work place helps in reducing stress and
achieving job satisfaction. Ramayah (2011) evaluates within the Malaysian
context whether mentoring leads to job satisfaction. His findings reveal that
career mentoring was related to all the dimensions of job satisfaction. The
dimensions of job satisfaction studied here were: job itself, co-workers,
supervisors, and promotion. Mentor plays an important role in higher level of
learning always and it directly results in positive employee outcomes. But,
psychological mentoring doesn’t have a significant relationship with the three
factors of job satisfaction (co-workers, job itself and promotion). It is also
stated in the study that because psychological mentoring leads to non-
monetary satisfaction, employees at maximum time don’t value it. Oshagbemi
(1999) highlights the academics and their managers’ job satisfaction levels: A
comparative Study. Managers and academics are not able to achieve job
satisfaction because they are not satisfied with the present pay, research and
administration and management. Therefore, organizations have to look
forward for the ways to reduce the dissatisfaction level where in they can
make few changes to the code of conduct of the administration and
management and helping the employees to achieve a satisfaction level.
Silverthrone (2008) studied the contribution of personality variable locus of
control on job satisfaction and related outcomes such as performance and job
stress. Findings reveal that internal locus of control leads to lower level of job
stress and higher level of job satisfaction and performance. External locus of
control doesn’t reduce the job stress whereas internal locus of control leads to
performance and satisfaction by reducing the job stress. Artz (2010) studies
the link between Fringe benefits and job satisfaction. Fringe benefits always
don’t lead to job satisfaction. It is always acceptable to an extent where in the
employee has a feeling that he is able to satisfy his needs. Many a times it is
found that it doesn’t match the requirement of the employee leading to
dissatisfaction. Therefore, organizations have to review their system in a better
way which will provide fringe benefits as required and provide employees
every opportunity to avail them, ultimately leading to job satisfaction. Mudor
and Tookson (2011) discusses about the link between human resource
management practices, job satisfaction and finally the turnover. Supervision,
training and pay practices which are the three variables in HRM Practices are
very adversely associated with job satisfaction. Effective jobs help in achieving
job satisfaction with continuous training and good pay. Job satisfaction is
directly related to turnover. Al-Zoubi (2012) studies the relationship between
job satisfaction of various private and public Jordanian organizations and
Salary. He found that salary is not a prime factor that influences job
satisfaction. Though financial effect is fast but has very sort effect. Job
satisfaction is always a long-term requirement by an organization. Therefore,
organizations should think of innovative ways that will enhance all job aspects
including salaries as well as psycho-social variables that enhances the work life
quality. Saleem, Mahmood and Mahmood (2010) study was focused to the
mobile telcom services in Pakistan wherein the effect of work motivation on
job satisfaction was studied. Training is perceived to be a regular ongoing
process for systematic progression of employees’ attitude, skill and knowledge
in creating motivation towards their job satisfaction. The HRM system of the
organization helps in resolving the issues of work motivation and job
satisfaction. Conclusion and Implications for further research The literature
review indicates there are many factors which help in achieving job satisfaction
The factors may be the type of work assigned to them; work environment,
work design etc. Salary is certainly an important factor but it always doesn’t
play such a big role as it looks. Non-monetary benefits play a bigger role at
large. Therefore, organizations have to have a intellect think on their HRM
system on a regular basis so that it helps in improving the system, work
environment, decreasing the job stress and finally leading to job satisfaction
and more job involvement. Future studies can focus on factors such as
mentoring, coaching and personal development plans influencing job
satisfaction. The next generation employees, the Z generation is a completely
different breed. Researches focused on understanding what influences the job
satisfaction of these employees will be quite relevant for the organizations.

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