Chapter 10: Employee Satisfaction and Commitment

What is job satisfaction?

Job satisfaction is the attitude employees have towards their jobs.

What is organizational commitment?

The extent to which an employee identifies with and is involved with an organization.

What is affective commitment?

The extent to which an employee wants to remain with an organization and cares about the organization.

What is continuance commitment?

The extent to which employees believe they must remain with an organization due to the time, expense, and effort they have already put into it.

What is normative commitment?

The extent to which employees feel an obligation to remain with an organization.

What does social information processing theory/social learning theory state?

Employees model their levels of satisfaction and motivation from other employees.

What is distributive justice?

The perceived fairness of the decisions made in an organization.

What is procedural justice?

The perceived fairness of the methods used by an organization to make decisions.

What is interactional justice?

The perceived fairness of the interpersonal treatment that employees receive in an organization.

What is informational justice?

The extent to which a supervisor is open and transparent in sharing information.

What is job enlargement?

A system in which employees are given more tasks to perform at the same time.

What is job enrichment?

A system in which employees are given more responsibility over the tasks and decisions related to their job.

What is the job diagnostic survey (JDS)?

A measure of the extent to which a job provides opportunities for growth, autonomy and meaning.

What are self-directed teams?

Groups of employees who work together to achieve a common goal without a designated leader.

What are quality circles?

Employee groups that meet to propose changes that will improve productivity and work life quality.

What is the faces scale?

A measure of job satisfaction where raters choose a facial expression that resembles how they feel about their jobs.

What is the job descriptive index (JDI)?

A measure of job satisfaction that yields scores on five dimensions.

What is the Minnesota satisfaction questionnaire (MSQ)?

A measure of job satisfaction that yields scores on 20 dimensions.

What is the job in general (JIG) scale?

A measure of the overall level of job satisfaction.

What is the organizational commitment questionnaire (OCQ)?

A 15-item questionnaire that taps three dimensions of organizational commitment.

What is the organizational commitment scale (OCS)?

A nine-item survey that taps three aspects of organizational commitment.

What is well pay?

A method of absenteeism control where employees are paid for their unused sick leave.

What is a financial bonus?

A method of absenteeism control where employees who meet an attendance standard are given a cash reward.

What are games in relation to absenteeism control?

Absenteeism control methods where games like poker and bingo reward employee attendance.

What is a paid time off program (PTO)?

An attendance policy that combines all paid vacations, sick days, holidays, etc.

What does person/organization fit mean?

The extent to which an employee's personality, values, and skills match those of the organization.

What is embeddedness in the workplace?

The extent to which employees have links to their jobs and community and the importance of these links.

What is underemployment?

When individuals work fewer hours than desired or are employed in jobs that don't fully utilize their skills.

How does underemployment relate to labor underutilization?

Labor underutilization includes both unemployed and underemployed individuals.

What are some factors that influence job satisfaction?

Job fit, organization type, fairness, relationships at work, and career choice.

What is person-environment fit?

How well an individual's interests, skills, and values align with their job environment.

How does person-environment fit relate to job satisfaction?

It emphasizes matching preferences with job characteristics to enhance satisfaction.

What are the components of the job characteristics model?

- Skill Variety: The range of skills required for the job.
- Task Identity: The degree to which the job is a whole, identifiable piece of work.
- Task Significance: The perceived importance of the job.
- Autonomy: The level of control the worker has over their job.
- Task Feedback: The direct feedback a worker gets from the job itself. These factors influence how satisfying the job is

What does fairness in the workplace mean?

How rewards, decisions, and treatment are distributed and handled in an organization.

How does fairness impact job satisfaction?

Fairness has a significant impact on job satisfaction and affects employee engagement.

How do employees assess fairness in the workplace?

Through distributive, procedural, and interactional justice.

What challenges exist when measuring job satisfaction?

Simple questions may not fully capture job feelings; a comprehensive approach may be needed.

What is organizational commitment?

The degree of an individual's attachment to and involvement in their organization.

Why is organizational commitment important?

It is associated with acceptance of the organization's values and goals and leads to positive behaviors.

What are the three types of organizational commitment?

Affective, Normative, and Continuance Commitment.

How can organizational commitment be compared to romantic relationships?

Affective is like "Do I like you?", Normative is "Do I owe you?", and Continuance is "Would I leave you if I had better options?".

What does anthropomorphizing an organization mean?

Attributing human qualities to non-human entities like organizations.

Why is anthropomorphizing organizations a problem?

It leads to unrealistic expectations and emotional reactions from employees.

What are barriers to effective analysis in organizations?

Using psychological metaphors that hinder honest assessment of real issues.

- How the company assesses risks and makes decisions
- The competitive pressures it faces in the market
- Problems like poor communication within the organization

Why is organizational commitment important in the workplace?

It influences employee behavior, productivity, and desire to stay.

What is organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB)?

Voluntary behaviors that go beyond job requirements.

How does organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) relate to organizational commitment?

Committed employees are more likely to engage in OCB.

What are the costs of employee turnover?

Loss of productivity, increased workload, recruitment, and training expenses.

How can organizations prevent turnover?

By improving job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and retention strategies.

how do the 3 types of organizational justices affect employee perceptions?

- Distributive Justice: Concerns fairness in the distribution of rewards and outcomes.
- Procedural Justice: Involves fairness in the processes that lead to decisions.
- Interactional Justice: Focuses on how employees are treated during decision-making processes. All contribute to employee trust and satisfaction.

how does finding the job you fit into relate to job satisfaction?

Job satisfaction is influenced by the features and opportunities that a career can offer, which align with an individual's needs and goals

why is job satisfaction so extensively studied in I-O psychology?

one of the most researched variables in industrial-organizational (I-O) psychology because it can be easily measured and is related to various work outcomes, such as job performance, organizational commitment, motivation, and health

what is interpersonal justice?

the extent to which a supervisor adequately treats an employee