An exploration of whether job satisfaction predicts subjective well-being among social workers

Abstract

The purpose of this quantitative correlational study was to examine if and to what extent Herzberg's motivating factors of job satisfaction predicts the subjective well-being (SWB), as measured by SWLS among currently practicing social workers in the USA. The study was guided by two research questions: 1) To what extent, if any, does general job satisfaction, as measured by the Minnesota satisfaction questionnaire (MSQ) predict subjective well-being, as measured by the satisfaction with life scale (SWLS)?; 2) To what extent, if any, do the five dimensions of the MSQ (work itself, recognition, achievement, responsibility, and personal growth), together and separately, predict subjective well-being, as measured by the SWLS? One hundred eighty-seven practicing social workers were surveyed to collect the primary data. Results from a regression analysis indicated that job satisfaction is significantly associated with SWB, p < 0.001; R2 = 0.312 and the only dimension of the MSQ that was found to have a statistically significant association with SWB was advancement, p < 0.015. The results indicated a significant relationship between job satisfaction and SWB; however, individual dimensions of job satisfaction's relationship to SWB found advancement as the only factor that significantly affects SWB among social workers in the USA.