“If it wasn’t for the money, I’d be out of here.”
“Work sucks – I can’t wait to get home.”
These phrases are probably heard more often than is healthy, but with the current economy, quitting a crappy job might not always be an option.
“It’s true that when the economy is bad, there are more dissatisfied people because … there’s not as many options to switch jobs,” said Alice Stuhlmacher, an industrial and organizational psychologist at DePaul University in Chicago.
A report released in January found that “only 45 percent of those surveyed say they are satisfied with their jobs, down from 61.1 percent in 1987.”
But what causes job dissatisfaction?
Paul Spector, an industrial-organizational psychology professor at the University of South Florida, said work dissatisfaction can be caused by individual differences.
“Some people for whatever reasons just are more satisfied than other people – satisfied in life, satisfied in lots of things,” Spector said, which can be associated with personality.
There are also work occurrences that can impact satisfaction, including fairness, treatment of employees, and satisfaction relating to the actual work employees have to do, he said.
“People have an overall attitude about their job, but they also can be satisfied with some aspects of work and not with other aspects of work,” Spector said. “You might really like your coworkers but not like the work you’re doing.”
Valerie Sessa, an industrial and organizational psychology associate professor at Montclair State University, said in an e-mail that research has shown that fair or just treatment; achievement; and “warm, interesting and cooperative relationships on the job” are factors that lead to satisfaction or dissatisfaction.
Malissa Clark, an industrial and organizational psychology assistant professor at Auburn University, said in an e-mail that job insecurity can lead to dissatisfaction.
“Many employees have seen their co-workers get laid off, and they are uncertain about whether their jobs are safe,” Clark said. “They are also feeling guilty that their jobs were spared while their co-workers were not so lucky (a phenomenon called survivor’s guilt).”
When employees have work dissatisfaction, it can sometimes impact job performance and even have other mental health side effects.
“Work dissatisfaction makes you think about leaving your job,” Stuhlmacher said. “It might cause you to neglect things and not put in so much effort … not go to the extra steps of learning things, or trying things or serving customers.”
However, some people can use this opportunity to improve their situation.
“When there’s not options, then the person might think about, ‘What can I do in my job that might … provide the enrichment or activities or things that might make it worthwhile,’” Stuhlmacher said. “Whether it’s learning a new skill or talking to my supervisor about some ways to add some new dimensions or correct some things.”
More control for the employee is always better.
“Sometimes just changing how the work is done might help dissatisfaction,” Stuhlmacher said. “It gives people some more control. A lot of the stress research talks about how the sense of control is really important on the job … it could involve getting more information about your options or exploring things on the Web for other career options.”
Networking to find out other job opportunities and social support can also help with job dissatisfaction, she said.
Regardless of dissatisfaction and frustration, employees should avoid decreasing their performance or acting out.
“If you leave that organization, you’re going to want to keep friends there or connections and to not let your dissatisfaction influence your relationships,” Stuhlmacher said.
Although some employees can work well despite job dissatisfaction, stress combined with dissatisfaction can cause some mental health effects, Sessa said. These include “emotional exhaustion, irritability, reduced self-esteem, and even depression.”
“When people are dissatisfied with work, they tend to withdraw,” Sessa said. “They get to work late, they are absent more, or they leave. On the job, those that are more dissatisfied are more likely to do things that are detrimental to the organization, such as antisocial behaviors.”
Spector said one of his studies backed up the idea that it can be pretty obvious when employees are dissatisfied with work.
“We asked people how satisfied they were, and then we asked their supervisors how happy the supervisor thought they were, and supervisors were pretty aware whether people were satisfied at work or not,” Spector said.
There are some reasons behind this apparent dissatisfaction.
“I think people were pretty outspoken if they’re unhappy with things,” Spector said. “They let their bosses and their coworkers know.”
Even if employees don’t verbally express their unhappiness, it comes across.
“They may show it in their demeanor,” Spector said. “If somebody’s really miserable at work, it may be kind of obvious that they’re unhappy. Not just because they say it, but because you look at them and you can tell by their expressions, and maybe by their interactions with other people that they’re happy or they’re not happy.”
Although there are not many studies relating the rough economy with work dissatisfaction, he said there could be a possible link.
“The people who aren’t laid off are expected to do the jobs of the people that got laid off, so workloads increase,” Spector said. “So here you’re working and your friends got laid off, and you’re expected now to do your job and their job, so your workload increased. And you’re working more hours and you’re working harder but you’re not getting any more money. And you’re reluctant to slack off at all because you’re afraid you’ll be next.”
This can produce stress and dissatisfaction, and the situation also isn’t fair, he said.
“When you’re pretty sure it’s going to be hard finding another job, you’re likely to be a little reluctant to complain too much,” Spector said.
Work dissatisfaction can be a cause or symptom of psychological well-being.
“Sometimes people who are having some well-being issues, that’s just a symptom of it,” Spector said. “But certainly if you’re in a job that you dislike, it’s going to take a toll on your overall well-being.”
Some effects include physical symptoms like headaches, backaches and trouble sleeping.
However, generally people who are overall satisfied outside of work will likely be satisfied in work, unless they just really despise their job.
“People who are well-adjusted to life who have [a] high level of well-being are likely to be pretty satisfied with their jobs,” Spector said.
Sources:
http://www.conference-board.org/press/pressdetail.cfm?pressid=3820