• Corpus ID: 55529736

The effect of workplace relationships on employee job satisfaction for 25 to 35 year olds

@inproceedings{Harmer2005TheEO,
  title={The effect of workplace relationships on employee job satisfaction for 25 to 35 year olds},
  author={Richard J. Harmer and Bruce M. Findlay},
  year={2005}
}

• Richard J. Harmer, B. Findlay
• Published 2005
• Business

Work and job satisfaction has been shown to impact upon an individual’s mental and physical health and overall satisfaction with life. Previous research into employee job satisfaction has explored workers’ relationships to their work tasks and their organisation. Less research has been conducted into the impact an individual’s workplace relationships has on their level of job satisfaction, with even less research in this area focusing on younger workers. The aim of the present study was to determine the role an employee’s co-worker and direct supervisor relationships had in predicting their level of job satisfaction. Sixty-nine individuals participated in the study, 35 males (Age: M=31.8, SD=6.0) and 34 females (Age: M=29.5, SD=5.0). Fifty-three participants indicated that they were employed full time; twelve indicated that they were employed part time; and the remaining participants indicated that they were employed casual or ‘other’. Work and job satisfaction was measured using the Job Descriptive Index (JDI) and Job in General (JIG) scales. Results indicate that 52.1% of an employee’s job satisfaction can be predicted by the quality of their workplace relationships, with an individual’s relationship with their co-workers the strongest predictor. Results indicate that the quality of an employee’s co-worker and immediate supervisor relationships does not significantly predict their level of well-being. Implications of the study’s finding with respect to workforce planning are discussed and suggestions for further research are made. Work is one of the most fundamental of life’s tasks (Csikszentmihalyi, 1992; Sweeney & Witmer, 1991). Research focusing on the biopsychosocial impacts of work satisfaction and dissatisfaction on the modern worker (for a summary see Sweeney & Witmer, 1991) suggests that one’s level of satisfaction with one’s work impacts upon one’s mental and physical health and overall satisfaction with life (Balzer, Kihm, Smith, Irwin, Bachiochi, Robie, Sinar & Parra, 1997; Csikszentmihalyi, 1992; Earnshaw, Amundson & Borgen, 1990; Kinnunen & Natti, 1994). Much of the research exploring job satisfaction suggests that satisfaction with one’s job or work is related to the work tasks being undertaken (Balzer et al., 1997). Research completed by Balzer and his colleagues suggests that satisfaction with one’s work tasks is the greatest predictor of overall job satisfaction. Further, it remains the greatest predictor of job satisfaction, independent of the specific work tasks being completed by the worker or the age or gender of the worker. However changes in the working conditions of modern employees, including increasing work hours, varying working arrangements and intensifying job demands (Allen, Herts, Bruck, & Sutton, 2000; Guest, 2002), matched with the segmenting and compartmentalising of many workplace tasks (Hochschild, 1997); as well as the increasingly common current workplace rhetoric of, “do more, for less ... and faster” have made it increasingly challenging, particularly for Australia’s younger workers, to find job satisfaction in the specific work tasks they undertake. Research examining the factors that impact upon an individual achieving and maintaining job satisfaction is widespread, and varied (e.g., Gardner, 2003; Guest, 2002; Oats & VellaBrodrick, 2003). However, within the 25 to 35 year old demographic; “Generation X” as this cohort has been labelled in popular literature; published research is less readily available. Research does suggest that workplace motivation for Australia’s younger workers is just as likely to be linked to intra-office social connectedness, as it is work task performance (Hays, 1999; Oats & Vella-Broderick, 2003). Longer working hours for Generation X have resulted in an increased need for social support whilst at work. Social activity is pivotal to an individual’s mental, physical and spiritual health, with research indicating that individuals who regularly engage in social activity do experience greater positive well-being (Myers, Sweeney & Witmer, 2000). The present research explored alternative avenues towards job satisfaction, exclusive of work task satisfaction. We were interested in exploring the effect of workplace relationships on employee job satisfaction, for Australia’s younger workers. The present research was interested in determining if more harmonious workplace relationships with one’s direct supervisor and one’s co-workers would have a positive effect on the individual’s overall job satisfaction and holistic well-being. It was specifically hypothesised that a respondent’s overall job satisfaction would significantly positively correlate with co-worker satisfaction and direct supervisor satisfaction; and also that co-worker satisfaction and supervisor satisfaction would significantly predict respondents’ perceived level of holistic well-being.