Job Satisfaction Case Study

Introduction
"Job satisfaction refers to the degree of pleasure or positive affect that an employee has toward
his or her job" (Locke, 1976).  Job characteristics, social comparison, and disposition are factors
that contribute to job satisfaction.  According to research, performance, absenteeism, and turnover
are three variables that correlate with job satisfaction.  "Job satisfaction has been highly studied
and seems related to almost every aspect of a person’s job" (The Pennsylvania State University,
2001). Helping people attain satisfaction with what they do at their jobs, is not only an important
aspect of I/O psychology, it is important to all those who work; a 1/3 of our days are spent working
and we will work an average of 20 to 30 years in our lifetime (The Pennsylvania State University,
2011). This personal case study will be explore and illustrate how job satisfaction is directly linked
to the level of motivation and attitude an employee has in regards to his job.    

Overview
Causes of Job Satisfaction & Dissatisfaction
Job Characteristics: Looks at core characteristics and job factors when dealing with job
satisfaction. “The most popular measure of job satisfaction assesses how employees feel about
their jobs along five dimensions: the type of work itself, pay, promotional opportunities,
supervision, and co-workers” (Smith, Kendall, & Hulin, 1969).
Social Comparison: “The social-information processing approach to job satisfaction assumes
that attitudes are determined, in part, by the attitudes of those around us” (Jex & Spector, 1989).
This looks at how individuals compare themselves with others in the work place. Individuals can
bring others down by whining, or motivate them as well based on attitudes.
Disposition: “The most recent explanation for job satisfaction is that some employees are more
prone to be satisfied or dissatisfied, in spite of the nature of the job or the social environment” (The
Pennsylvania State University, 2011). Disposition is the mood and temperament of individuals and
let us know if they are satisfied or dissatisfied with their jobs.
Correlates of Job Satisfaction
Performance:  Looks at how individuals perform in their jobs.  Under job satisfaction performance
has been studied for over 40 years. The idea of understanding employee performance is so
companies can find ways to keep employee performance meeting or exceeding company
standards, rather than falling below.
Absenteeism: Looks at individuals and why they may be absent from their jobs. Companies give
employees a certain amount of days for time off work. Under job satisfaction its important to know
why employees are taking off work. Is it for vacation or might it be the working conditions at work?
Turnover: Looks at rate in which employees come and go from their jobs. This is an important
part of wanting to see other options for employees. If they are dissatisfied they will likely seek
similar or other jobs that make them satisfied.

Details of Case
Detective Matthews has been employed by the East Hartford Township Police Department since
January of 1989.  Detective Matthews first worked as a patrol officer and was awarded Officer-of-
the-Year in 1991.  Due to his excellent investigation skills, he was promoted to the position of
detective in 1993.  Detective Matthews’ case load includes investigations of robbery, theft, fraud,
and an occasional homicide, however, he specializes in the investigation of child abuse and
sexual assaults that occur in East Hartford Township. 
Detective Matthews would like to be promoted to a supervisory position where he would have the
opportunity to assist police officers and guide newer detectives in their investigations.  However,
promotional opportunities are very rare in East Hartford Township.  Detective Matthews is also
under the impression that social networking with the current supervisors is more important to
obtain a promotion, rather than work ethic or experience.  Detective Matthews chooses not to
engage in office politics and therefore has been in the same position since 1993 doing the same
type of cases. 
Although Detective Matthews work ethic is strong and he still cares for the victims of the cases he
investigates, he is extremely dissatisfied with the department where he works and no longer tries
to go ‘above and beyond’ in order to complete his duties. 

Analysis
Given the subjective nature of job satisfaction, evaluative, cognitive,
and behavioral components must be considered in order to determine overall global job
satisfaction.  For Detective Matthews' case, an evaluation was performed according to his
individual job facet satisfaction.  By examining specific facet areas relevant to his job, his global
job satisfaction was determined.  This in turn, could assist the department he works for in
diagnosing organizational issues, and highlight areas for intervention  (The Pennsylvania State
University, 2011).   Although the causes of job satisfaction are complex and multifaceted, three
general categories contribute to job satisfaction: Job Characteristics, Social Comparisons, and
Disposition (The Pennsylvania State University, 2011). These three categories, along with
additional correlates that influence satisfaction, will provide us with the evaluative, cognitive, and
behavioral components needed to determine the detective's job satisfaction. 

Job Characteristics
Research has shown that job satisfaction is determined by the nature and characteristics of jobs
(Spector & Jex, 1991).  Smith, Kendall, & Hulin (1969), developed the five facets of job satisfaction
that assess how employees feel about their jobs.  By analyzing Detective Matthews' case
according to the five categories, more insight was gained into his level of satisfaction with his job.
1. Type of Work itself
Detective Matthews' is a police detective in charge of handling a range of cases, including
homicide, robbery, theft and fraud.  He specializes in child abuse and sexual assault cases, which
often make up the majority of his workload. He spends most of his time filling out paperwork and at
other times conducting interviews.
2. Pay
His pay comes in at $67,000 annually, with overtime opportunities available for emergency call
outs. Pay and benefits are reported as being satisfactory.  The detective will receive a pension
when he retires at the age of 50, which is 50% of his pay for life and full medical benefits.
3. Promotional Opportunities
Promotions are available only if a supervisor were to retire, which rarely occurs at East Hartford
Township, and competition for promotions is extremely difficult.  Promotions are routinely granted
to employees that engage in office politics, and social networking with their supervisors.  Detective
Matthews had the opportunity twice to receive recognition by promotion but was denied.  He was
awarded Officer-of-the-Year in 1991 and then subsequently promoted to detective in 1993. Since
being detective there have been no demerits, but no accommodations either. This is not out of the
norm for the department; recognition awards were stopped once the new chief was hired.
4. Supervision
Detective Matthews usually works his cases alone, and is behind a desk unless he is out in the
field conducting interviews. He operates with an amount of autonomy but has low skill variety. 
He feels his direct supervisor is a micro-manager, and watches over his paperwork very closely.  
He is required to keep his supervisor informed about his progress.  Since this is the case,
autonomy in certain aspects is kept at a minimum.  He still works independently most of the time. 
On occasions in which a suspect is viewed as a possible physical threat, a co-worker will
accompany the detective to the interview. 
5. Co-Workers
East Hartford Township Police Department is on the smaller side, employing 32 patrol officers and
3 detectives, one being the supervising detective. Detective Matthews has by far the most
experience of his co-workers (the supervisor was transferred to the detective division after being a
supervisor of street patrol.) However, both detectives are assigned the same type of work and
considered to be of equal status.

Social Comparisons
Detective Matthews is under the belief that there are certain cliques in place at work, commonly
referred to as the 'good old boy' system, which is made up of those who are willing to engage
in office politics and lunch with the supervisors on a daily basis.  In Detective Matthews' police
department it appears that in order to get a promotion one must participate in  these office politics
to please the supervisors.  Although Detective Matthews is highly respected at his department for
his work ethic and knowledge, it has become evident to him that promotional opportunities are not
based on these factors.  To Detective Matthews, promotions are based on being part of the 'good
old boy' system.  He feels that due to his lack of participation in these office politics, he has been
passed over twice during promotional opportunities.  He is very frustrated and unsatisfied by this,
and would like a chance to teach some of the less experienced officers what he has learned
through working cases and interviewing people. His social comparison is demotivating as he is
comparing his strong work ethic, experience, and knowledge to his lesser valued attributes such
as office politics.
Additionally, because of the political system at work behind the scenes, overall attitude of
employees is low.  The detective finds the atmosphere reflects an oppressed environment, since
his co-workers feel there is not much room for promotion or advancement.  Other employees in
the department, as well as himself, view their work to be routine and boring ( low skill variety). 
His main complaint is the complete lack of recognition/feedback for a job well done. Rarely does
he get a thank-you (positive feedback) from his department or the victims that he helps.  Another
complaint is that the detective's office is located in the basement of the department, on the other
side of the building from where the patrol units are located upstairs. He finds communication
between patrol and detectives to be lacking as a result of this, which is necessary when working
on cases.  In addition, he sits at his desk for many hours throughout the day without seeing
sunlight.  When he compares his work environment to some of the other officers in his department
that have nicer offices, he feels additional dissatisfaction with his job.  Another area of
dissatisfaction for Detective Matthews has to do with his supervisor.  He considers his supervisor
to be a micro-manager, and finds working under his direction to be suppressive.  The detective
also has more experience doing investigative work than his supervisor, and is bothered even more
by his micro-managing for this reason. 
Overall, social comparisons to other East Hartford Township Police Department employees have
produced negative and hostile feelings for Detective Matthews, which have contributed to most of
the dissatisfaction he feels with his job.  

Disposition
Although Detective Matthews states that his home life is positive, due to the nature of his work, he
has a more cynical view of life. He feels this cynicism would have developed regardless of whether
he was happy with his department or not.  He deals with the worst of the offenders, child
molesters, and rapists, and considers himself to be jaded in the sense that it's hard for him to find
the good in people.  His job forces him to study people in order to determine what motivates them
to do horrible things, and over the years this has had an influence on his overall disposition.  
Detective Matthews' disposition is leading to negative affectivity from working in his position
which in turn affects his position.  In other words, one could say Detective Matthews' is spiraling
into job dissatisfaction.  As he is impacted by the horrors of his victims and perpetrators his
disposition becomes more negative which in turn has him respond more negatively to other
aspects of his job creating overall job dissatisfaction. 
Despite feeling increasingly negative towards his position at work, Detective Matthews feels
fulfilled outside of work through time spent with his wife and children, serving in the United States
Air Force, and refereeing for midget football, which he finds to be healthy distractions from his
dissatisfaction with work.

Correlates of Job Satisfaction

Although a good deal of research has been conducted, the relationship between job satisfaction
and other factors of work is shown to be strictly correlational.  Due to the complex nature of these
relationships, research has been unable to tell which factor is the primary influence on an
employee's level of satisfaction.  Therefore, it is concluded that job satisfaction and other factors
affecting one's job are related, but it is not possible to tell which factor is causing the satisfaction or
dissatisfaction.  By examining Detective Matthews' case on the basis of performance,
absenteeism, and turnover, there is a better understanding of the correlates contributing to his
overall global job satisfaction.
Performance
The relationship between job satisfaction and performance has been studied for over 40 years,
and there has been an overall weak relationship found between the two constructs.  A meta-
analysis conducted by Iaffaldano and Muchinsky (1985), "found the correlation between
satisfaction and performance to be only .17" (The Pennsylvania State University, 2011). 
According to the Global Model of Performance, "performance is determined by ability, motivation,
and opportunity" (The Pennsylvania State University, 2011).  As indicated by Detective Matthews'
22 year tenure and promotion to detective in 1993, it can be concluded that his ability level is
high.  However, the lack of opportunity for a supervisory position has led to feelings of
dissatisfaction with his job.  This has in turn led to a decrease in motivation.  When opportunity for
a promotion was viewed as viable through exhibiting superior performance, the detective was
motivated to go "above and beyond."  When opportunity was shown to be available only through
office politics and networking, his motivation to excel decreased and his attitude became
negative.  Although his satisfaction had gone down, he still continued to work on his cases
relentlessly without a noticeable decrease in his performance.  However, his performance did
decrease somewhat, since he is no longer going the extra mile.  The small change in
performance, instead of a drastic change, could be attributed to the motivation he gets from his
desire to continuing helping innocent victims.  He could also be motivated from his desire to keep
his job, and to reach retirement and receive his pension.  Therefore, he maintains a minimum level
of performance.  There are several correlates to his motivation, however there is not one
single factor that is causing his motivation. 
Absenteeism
There has been an overall weak relationship found between job satisfaction and absence.  While a
dissatisfied worker may choose to miss work, a satisfied employee may not be able to attend work
due to various circumstances.  Compared to a dissatisfied worker, a satisfied employee is more
likely to attend work if they have a minor illness, such as a cold or headache.  When factors such
as excused versus unexcused absences and organizational sanctions for absenteeism are taken
into account, a small, but consistent negative relationship is found between the two constructs
(The Pennsylvania State University, 2001). 
Detective Matthews is given a good bit of vacation time and uses it liberally, but will call off ‘sick’ a
couple of times a month just in order to avoid reporting to work. If his case load is light it is not
uncommon for him to call off sick 1 to 2 days a month, but these are in reality days to take a break
rather than there being an illness. There is no penalty for calling off because employees are given
an absurd amount of sick days, but upon retirement employees are given a bonus for the amount
of sick days they have remaining which deters some people from taking too many. Employees are
initially given 100 sick days and receive an additional sick day per month.  Employees receive a
bonus of $100 per remaining sick day, or a bonus of $10,000 if all sick days are remaining.    In
order to receive the bonus employees must have at least 55 sick days remaining.  Because of job
dissatisfaction, Detective Matthews is more likely to be absent from work but he has maintained an
attendance level that will qualify him for a bonus upon retirement.  Vacation time is very
satisfactory (9 weeks/year) but he must schedule these in advance, so there is no way to call off
last minute 'on vacation'.  There are no other types of personal days.  One can determine from
examining the detective's case study, that his job dissatisfaction is correlated to absenteeism,
since burnout and lack of desire to be at work has caused him to be absent.
Turnover
Although Detective Matthews has been in the same position for 18 years and has been employed
with the department for 22 years, he is not satisfied.  He makes a hobby out of putting in job
applications and has been offered several positions, but he stays where he is in order to collect his
full pension when he retires in four years.  If he were to leave prior to his retirement date, he would
only receive a partial pension payment and no medical benefits.  Since this is the case, overall
turnover at the department is extremely low, as is overall morale.  However, that has not deterred
the detective from applying to other positions in hopes of finding his 'dream job.'  There have not
been any suitable substitutes for his present job, therefore he has decided to stay where he is.  
One can determine that a relationship between satisfaction and turnover does exist in this case,
since the detective would take another position if one became available, and has physically looked
for one in the past. 
Summary
By looking at the detective's job facet satisfaction and influencing correlates, a clearer
understanding is formed of the evaluative, cognitive, and behavioral components that contribute to
his global job satisfaction.  His evaluative determination deals with whether he likes or dislikes his
job (The Pennsylvania State University, 2011).  The analysis concludes that there are many
aspects of Detective Matthews' job he is dissatisfied with such as supervision, possibility of
promotion, and routine work.  When asked, the detective confirmed these conclusions.  He stated
that despite all that, he still does like his job.  His cognitive determination is concerned with his
beliefs about his job (The Pennsylvania State University, 2011).  This analysis of his case tells us
he finds his job rewarding, because he is helping people.  However, he also finds it to be boring
and routine, and finds the atmosphere he works in to be unpleasant.  He is very pleased with the
long-term benefits of holding his job, such as his pension, however unhappy with his level of
supervision.  Finally, the behavioral component of his job satisfaction shows us he is predisposed
to go above and beyond at work; however, if he feels that no reward will come of his hard work, he
is inclined not to continue working as hard.  Detective Matthews has an overall positive attitude
regarding his life, but has maintained a level of cynicism from his exposure to negative influences. 
Also, altogether he does not miss too many days of work.  He has proven himself to be a
dedicated and long-term employee, with his 22 year tenure.  When viewed as a whole, there is a
dynamic and complex nature of Detective Matthews' job satisfaction.  Despite a lot of job facet
dissatisfaction, the detective's states he is satisfied with his job globally. 
In conclusion, his case highlights the concept that correlation does not equal causation.  Many
factors both related and unrelated to the work environment have an influence, and must be taken
into consideration to form an accurate understanding of job satisfaction.