CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
The concept of job satisfaction has been
developed in many ways by many different researchers and practitioners. One of
the most widely used definitions in organizational research is that of Locke
(1976), who defines job satisfaction as "a pleasurable or positive
emotional state resulting from the appraisal of one's job or job
experiences" (p. 1304).Others have defined it as simply how content
an individual is with his or her job; whether he or she likes the job or not.It
is assessed at both the global level (whether or not the individual is
satisfied with the job overall), or at the facet level (whether or not the
individual is satisfied with different aspects of the job). Spector (1997) lists 14 common facets: Appreciation,
Communication, Coworkers, Fringe benefits, Job conditions, Nature of the work,
Organization, Personal growth, Policies and procedures, Promotion
opportunities, Recognition, Security, and Supervision.
A more recent definition of the concept of
job satisfaction is from Hulin and Judge (2003), who have noted that job
satisfaction includes multidimensional psychological responses to an individual's job, and
that these personal responses have cognitive (evaluative), affective (or
emotional), and behavioral components. Job
satisfaction scales vary in the extent to which they assess the affective
feelings about the job or the cognitive assessment of the job. Affective job
satisfaction is a subjective construct representing an emotional feeling
individuals have about their job. Hence,
affective job satisfaction for individuals reflects the degree of pleasure or
happiness their job in general induces. Cognitive job satisfaction is a more
objective and logical evaluation of various facets of a job. Cognitive job
satisfaction can be unidimensional if it comprises evaluation of just one facet
of a job, such as pay or maternity leave, or multidimensional if two or more
facets of a job are simultaneously evaluated. Cognitive job satisfaction does
not assess the degree of pleasure or happiness that arises from specific job
facets, but rather gauges the extent to which those job facets are judged by
the job holder to be satisfactory in comparison with objectives they themselves
set or with other jobs. While cognitive job satisfaction might help to bring
about affective job satisfaction, the two constructs are distinct, not
necessarily directly related, and have different antecedents and consequences.
Job satisfaction can also be seen within the
broader context of the range of issues which affect an individual's experience
of work, or their quality
of working life. Job
satisfaction can be understood in terms of its relationships with other key
factors, such as general well-being, stress at work, control at work, home-work
interface, and working conditions.
A study title "Analysis of Factors
Affecting Job Satisfaction of the Employees in Public and Private Sector",
in India concluded that in India Employees tend to love their job if they get
what they believe is an important attribute of a good job. Weightage factor of
each such attribute based on exhaustive survey has been calculated. Region,
sector and gender wise study of job satisfaction has provided consistent
picture with respect to distribution of data set analyzed showed that most of
the employees in Indian industry are not satisfied with their job except for a
few like male in commerce sector and female in education sector. Total job
satisfaction level of males is found to be higher than that of woman. Total job
satisfaction level in manufacturing sector is found to be very low.
Job satisfaction
is the level of contentment a person feels regarding his or her job. This
feeling is mainly based on an individual's perception of satisfaction.
Job satisfaction can
be influenced by a person's ability to complete required tasks, the level of
communication in an organization, and the way management treats employees.Job
satisfaction falls into two levels: affective job satisfaction and cognitive job satisfaction. Affective job
satisfaction is a person's emotional feeling about the job as a whole.
Cognitive job satisfaction is how satisfied employees feel concerning some
aspect of their job, such as pay, hours, or benefits.Many organizations face challenges in accurately
measuring job satisfaction, as the definition of satisfaction can differ among
various people within an organization. However, most organizations realize that
workers' level of job satisfaction can impacttheir job performance, and thus determining metrics is crucial to
creating strongefficiency.
Despite widespread
belief to the contrary, studies have shown that high-performing employees do
not feel satisfied with their job simply as a result of to high-level titles or
increased pay. This lack of correlation is an significant concern for
organizations, since studies also reveal that the implementation of positive HR practices results in
financial gain for the organizations. The cost of employees is quite high, and
creating satisfaction relevant to the return on this investment is paramount.
Simply put: positive work environments and increased shareholder value are directly related.
Some factors of job satisfaction may rank as more
important than others, depending on each worker's needs and personal and
professional goals.
To create a benchmark for measuring and ultimately creating
job satisfaction, managers in an organization can employ proven test methods
such as the Job Descriptive Index (JDI) or the Minnesota Satisfaction
Questionnaire (MSQ). These assessments help management define job
satisfaction objectively.
Typically, five
factors can be used to measure and influence job satisfaction: Pay or
total compensation The work itself (i.e., job specifics such
as projects, responsibilities)
Promotion opportunities (i.e., expanded responsibilities, more
prestigious title)Relationship with supervisor
Interaction and work relationship with coworkers.In addition to these
five factors, one of the most important aspects of an individual's work in a
modern organization concerns communication demands that the employee encounters
on the job. Demands can be characterized as a communication load: "the
rate and complexity of communication inputs an individual must process in a particular
time frame." If an individual receives too many messages simultaneously,
does not receive enough input on the job, or is unsuccessful in processing
these inputs, the individual is more likely to become dissatisfied, aggravated,
and unhappy with work, leading to a low level of job satisfaction.
Superior–subordinate
communication, or the relationship between supervisors and their direct
report(s), is another important influence on job satisfaction in the workplace.
The way in which subordinates perceive a supervisor's behavior can positively or negatively influence
job satisfaction. Communication behavior—such as facial expression, eye
contact, vocal expression, and body movement—is crucial to the
superior–subordinate relationship
The research
therefore seek to provide an appraisal of the concept and scope of job
satisfaction with a case study of UAC PLC
1.1
STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
The complexity and inability of many firm to measure and determine the
job satisfaction level of their employee compounds the ability of the firm to
motivate their employees effectively to achieve employee job satisfaction. when
employees are satisfied on their jobs they are highly motivated to perform
maximally. Many organizations face challenges in accurately measuring job
satisfaction, as the definition of satisfaction can differ among various people
within an organization. However, most organizations realize that workers' level
of job satisfaction can impact their job performance, and thus determining metrics is
crucial to creating strong efficiency.
Despite widespread belief to the contrary, studies have shown that
high-performing employees do not feel satisfied with their job simply as a
result of to high-level titles or increased pay. This lack of correlation is an
significant concern for organizations, since studies also reveal that the implementation of positive HR practices results in
financial gain for the organizations. The cost of employees is quite high, and
creating satisfaction relevant to the return on this investment is paramount.
Simply put: positive work environments and increased shareholder value are directly related.
Some factors of job satisfaction may rank as more
important than others, depending on each worker's needs and personal and
professional goals. To create a benchmark for measuring and ultimately creating
job satisfaction, managers in an organization can employ proven test methods
such as the Job Descriptive Index (JDI) or the Minnesota Satisfaction
Questionnaire (MSQ). These assessments help management define job
satisfaction objectively
Therefore the problem
confronting this research is to appraise the concept and scope of job
satisfaction with a case study of UAC PLC.
1.2
RESEARCH QUESTION
1 What is the nature of the
concept and scope of job satisfaction
2 What is the effect of job
satisfaction on employee performance
3 What is the nature and
effect of job satisfaction on employee performance in UAC PLC
1.3
OBJECTIVE OF THE RESEARCH
1 To determine the nature of
the concept and scope of job satisfaction
2 To determine the effect of
job satisfaction on employee performance
3 To determine the nature and
effect of job satisfaction on employee performance in UAC PLC
1.4
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE
RESEARCH
The research shall appraise
the nature and impact of job satisfaction on employee performance
It shall determine measures
for appraising the job satisfaction level employees and profer useful information to
managers and organisations.
1.5 STATEMENT OF THE HYPOTHESIS
1 Ho Employee performance in UAC is low
Hi Employee performance in UAC is high
2 Ho Job satisfaction level in
UAC is low
Hi Job
satisfaction level in UAC is high
3 Ho Impact of job satisfaction
on employee performance is low
Hi Impact of job satisfaction on employee
performance is high
1.6
SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The study focuses on the
appraisal of the concept and scope of job satisfaction and profer a case study
of the impact of job satisfaction on
employee performance in UAC PLC
1.7
DEFINITION OF TERMS
JOB SATISFACTION DEFINED
Job satisfaction is the
level of contentment a person feels regarding his or her job. This feeling is
mainly based on an individual's perception of satisfaction. Job satisfaction can
be influenced by a person's ability to complete required tasks, the level of
communication in an organization, and the way management treats employees
AFFECTIVE JOB
SATISFACTION
Affective
job satisfaction is a person's emotional feeling about the job as a whole.
COGNITIVE JOB
SATISFACTION
Cognitive
job satisfaction is how satisfied employees feel concerning some aspect of
their job, such as pay, hours, or benefits.
Genetics
It has been well documented that genetics
influence a variety of individual differences. Some research suggests genetics also play a role in the
intrinsic, direct experiences of job satisfaction like challenge or achievement
(as opposed to extrinsic, environmental factors like working conditions). One
experiment used sets of monozygotic twins, reared apart, to test for the
existence of genetic influence on job satisfaction. While the results indicate
the majority of the variance in job satisfaction was due to environmental
factors (70%), genetic influence is still a minor factor. Genetic heritability
was also suggested for several of the job characteristics measured in the
experiment, such as complexity level, motor skill requirements, and physical
demands.
Personality
Some research suggests an association between
personality and job satisfaction. Specifically, this
research describes the role of negative
affectivity and positive
affectivity. Negative
affectivity is related strongly to the personality trait of neuroticism. Individuals high in negative
affectivity are more prone to experience less job satisfaction. Positive
affectivity is related strongly to the personality trait of extraversion. Those high in positive affectivity
are more prone to be satisfied in most dimensions of their life, including
their job. Differences in affectivity likely impact how individuals will
perceive objective job circumstances like pay and working conditions, thus affecting
their satisfaction in that job.[48]
There are two personality factors related to
job satisfaction, alienation and locus of control. Employees who have an internal locus
of control and feel less alienated are more likely to experience job
satisfaction, job involvement and organizational commitment. A meta-analysis of
187 studies of job satisfaction concluded that high satisfaction was positively
associated with internal locus of control. The study also showed
characteristics like high machiavellianism, narcissism, trait anger, type
A personality dimensions of
achievement striving and impatience/irritability, are also related to job
satisfaction.[
Emotion
Mood and emotions at work are related to job satisfaction. Moods tend to be
longer lasting but often weaker states of uncertain origin, while emotions are
often more intense, short-lived and have a clear object or cause.
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Locke,E.A. (1976).
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position 54 (help)
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