Final answer:
Job satisfaction reflects the degree to which individuals are content with their jobs, impacting factors such as job performance and organizational success. It's measured using various methods including questionnaires with Likert scales and is correlated with overall life satisfaction as well as other workplace behaviors.
Step-by-step explanation:
Job satisfaction is a critical concept in the workplace and can be defined as the degree to which individuals feel gratified or content with their jobs. Introduced by Edwin Locke in 1976, it encompasses both cognitive and affective aspects, meaning it involves our thoughts about our job as well as our emotional reactions to it. Various factors can affect job satisfaction, such as the nature of the job, the individual's personality, and the cultural background of the employee.
Employers measure job satisfaction for various reasons, which include assessing the impact of organizational changes, as well as a routine check to predict and enhance an organization's performance. Tools like questionnaires, which may include a Likert scale to indicate varying degrees of satisfaction, are used to gauge an employee's contentment with their work. This measurement can be done at a global level or can focus on specific aspects of the job that might contribute to an employee's satisfaction.
Understanding and caring about job satisfaction is crucial because there's a correlation between job satisfaction and job performance, organizational citizenship, general life satisfaction, withdrawal behaviors such as absenteeism, turnover rates, and ultimately organizational performance. Satisfaction or happiness with one's choices in a job is referred to as utility by economists.