RELATIVE CONTRIBUTIONS OF MOTIVATOR AND HYGIENE FACTORS TO OVERALL JOB SATISFACTION. Gerald Halpern

Transcription

1 RB ~ [ s [ 13 A U ~ L t L Ii E T I N RELATIVE CONTRIBUTIONS OF MOTIVATOR AND HYGIENE FACTORS TO OVERALL JOB SATISFACTION Gerald Halpern This Bulletin is a draft for interoffice circulation. Corrections and suggestions for revision are solicited. The Bulletin should not be cited as a reference without the specific permission of the author. It is automatically superseded upon formal publication of the material. Educational Testing Service Princeton, New Jersey October 1965

2 Relative Contributions of Motivator and Hygiene Factors to Overall Job Satisfaction Abstract Ratings of four motivator job aspects, four hygiene job aspects, and overall job satisfaction were obtained from 93 male subjects who were equally satisfied with both the motivator and the hygiene aspects of their jobs. Two of the job aspects (work itself and opportunity for achievement), both motivators, were sufficient to account for the variance in overall satisfaction.

3 Relative Contributions of Motivator and Hygiene Factors to Overall Job Satisfaction l The motivator-hygiene theory states that job satisfaction and job dissatisfaction are reactions to different kinds of job aspects and denies that a given job aspect can be instrumental, to any appreciable degree, in providing both job satisfaction and job dissatisfaction. The theory is summarized by Herzberg, Mausner, and Snyderman (1959) as follows: ".. the three factors of work itself, responsibility, and advancement stand out strongly as the major factors involved in producing high job attitudes. Their role in producing poor job attitudes is by contrast extremely small. Contrariwise, company policy and administration, supervision..., and working conditions represent the major job dissatisfiers with little potency to affect job attitudes in a positive direction.... The job satisfiers deal with the factors involved in doing the job, whereas the job dissatisfiers deal with the factors that define the job context",j.pp. 1B1_8~~: The job aspects that form the content of the job are labeled motivators to draw attention to their ability to satisfy the individual's need for selfactualization in his work. Those job aspects that relate to the job context are labeled hygiene to symbolize the preventive role that they play in regard to job dissatisfaction. There are at least two aspects of this theory which tend to be misunderstood. To claim that the motivator factors, when present, contribute to satisfaction but not to dissatisfaction does not deny the reality of hygiene needs. The motivator-hygiene theory of job satisfaction clearly recognizes that llboth kinds of factors meet the needs of the employee" (Herzberg et al., p. 114), but stresses that only the presence of motivators can lead to satisfaction.

4 -2- It should also be noted that the motivator-hygiene theory does not predict level of satisfaction with any single factor whether it be hygiene or motivator. Although it is only the motivators that lead to overall job satisfaction, there is no assertion that employees cannot be equally satisfied with all aspects of their jobs. The theory simply says that these two factors have very different consequences for overall job satisfaction. Procedure The basic hypothesis of the motivator-hygiene theory was tested as part of a larger study which examined several of the assumptions inherent in counseling. As part of that study, ratings of satisfaction with both the motivator and hygiene aspects of work, as well as with overall satisfaction, were gathered. The sample was obtained from the files of a university counseling service. These files, entered for the years 19!~8-52, were searched for folders containing ACE Psychological Examination scores and Strong Vocational Interest Blank profiles of males aged at t~ne of counseling. A sample of 101 men was located, through the city telephone directory, and each was contacted by telephone. The study was briefly described to them as an investigation of the work patterns of former counselees. In every instance, an initial offer to cooperate was obtained and, in many instances, ~s voiced personal interest in the research. Of the 101 ~s, 93 returned completed questionnaires. The average age of Ss at the time of the study was 32.5 years (~ = 2.7), and they had worked an average of 9.5 years (~ = 4.1), had held an average of 3.9 jobs (~ = 2.0), and had worked an average of 3 years (~ = 1.7) on each job. Part of the questionnaire that ~s completed asked them to rate various aspects of their best-liked job using seven-point graphic rating scales. Scale

5 -3- values went from one, very dissatisfied, through four, neutral, to seven, very satisfied. The four motivator aspects rated were: (1) Opportunity for achievement: opportunities to achieve something you consider worthwhile, opportunities for successful accomplishments. (2) Work itself: the actual work performed. (3) Task responsibility: the amount of personal responsibility you were given for your own work. (4) Advancement: the opportunities available for getting ahead, for being promoted. The four hygiene aspects were: (5) Company policies: the procedures used by the company in conducting its business, as well as the company's attitude toward employees. (6) Supervision: the type of interpersonal relationships between yourself and your immediate supervisor. (7) Interpersonal relationships: the social atmosphere of your work group, the kinds of feelings that existed between yourself and your fellow-workers. (8) Working conditions: such things as the amount of work space available, lighting, temperature, equipment, and so forth. These eight job aspects and their classification as hygiene or motivator were taken from Herzberg et al. (1959). In addition, each S rated his overall satisfaction with the job. Overall satisfaction was defined to ~ as his feelings about the job as a whole, taking into account both the favorable and unfavorable aspects of the total job.

6 -4- Results and Discussion Table 1 presents the intercorrelation matrix and the means and standard deviations of each of the job aspects rated and their correlations with overall satisfaction. The average level of satisfaction across the four motivator job Insert Table 1 about here aspects was 5.9, and the average level of satisfaction across the four hygiene job aspects was 5.8 (n.s.). The average correlation between the four motivator job aspects and overall sat:i.sfaction was.65, and the average correlation between the four hygiene job aspects and overall satisfaction was.~ O (p <.01 that these are the same). A Wherry-Doolittle Multiple R was computed for the eight job aspects against the criterion of overall satisfaction. Two of the job aspects (Work Itself and Opportunity for Achievement), both motivators, accounted for 74% of the variance in ratings of overall satisfaction (R =.86). Both had equal beta weights. Two findings are readily apparent. First, Ss were equally well satisfied with both the motivator and the hygiene aspects of their jobs. There wag no difference in their ratings of satisfaction with either the motivator or the hygiene factors. Second, as predicted by the motivator-hygiene theory, the lnotivator factors contributed significantly more to overall satisfaction than did the hygiene factors. The average correlation between motivator job aspects and overall satisfaction was significantly higher than the average correlation between the hygiene job aspects and overall satisfaction. When the intercorrelations.between the job aspects were taken into account, only two of the motivator aspects were sufficient to account for the variance in overall satisfaction.

7 -5- These findings support the basic thesis of the motivator-hygiene theory of job satisfaction. In spite of the fact that ~s were equally satisfied with both aspects of their jobs, it is the motivators--the factors related to personal success in work and individual growth--that are primarily related to job satisfaction.

8 -6- Reference Herzberg, F., Mausner, B., & Snyderman, Barbara B. The motivation to work. New York: Wiley, 1959.

9 -7- Footnote la draft of this paper was presented at the meetings of the American Psychological Association, Chicago, Illinois, September 1965

10 Table 1 Intercorrelation Matrix and Means and Standard Deviations of Motivator and Hygiene Factor Ratings and Their Correlations with Overall Satisfaction (N == 93) Intercorrelation Matrix a Correlation with Ratings Factors Overall Satisfaction x IT Motivator Achievement Work Itself I 3. Responsibility ():) 4. Advancement Hygiene 5. Company Policy Supervision Interpersonal Relationships Working Conditions ~ecimal points omitted. I