Attitudes & Job Satisfaction

1. Introduction to People, Organisations and Management Part B – Week 2 Jill Baldwin MA,MCIPD, FHEA, PGCE Senior Lecturer Work Based LearningAshcroft International Business School Attitudes & Job Satisfaction

2. Learning outcomes By the end of this session you should be able to: • discuss the definitions, origins, formation and components of an attitude • analyse the relationship between attitudes and job satisfaction

3. Definition An attitude is: • “a relatively enduring organisation of beliefs, feelings, and behavioural tendencies towards socially significant objects, groups, events or symbols”(Hogg & Vaughan 2005) • “….. a person’s predisposition to think, feel or behave in certain ways towards certain defined targets.”(Arnold et al 1998)

4. How can they be distinguished from beliefs and values? • Attitudes – a state of ‘readiness’ or tendency to respond in a particular way • Beliefs – are concerned with what is known about the world, what ‘is’, reality. • Values – are concerned with what ‘should’ be and what is desirable Mullins 2010

5. The different origins of attitudes: Imitation (Rivis, 2008) Social Learning Theory (Bandura 1977): • Attitudes are learned through imitation and modelling. Parents and society influence attitude.

6. Formation of Attitude • Essentially attitudes are the outward manifestation of your inner values and beliefs • Attitudes ‘help’ predict work behaviour • Attitudes ‘help’ people to adapt to their work environment

7. Cognitive = Evaluation what do you know or believe about the object or issue Do you have a favourable or unfavourable opinion on something Affective = Feeling emotional component how do you ‘feel’ about the object or issue the desirable or undesirable aspect Behavioural = Action Behavioural part of attitude a predisposition to act in a particular way towards the object or issue Components of Attitudes

8. Attitude-Behaviour Link • ‘… where people are free to behave as they wish, behaviour is likely to be consistent with attitudes in order that dissonance be avoided’ (Woods and West, 2010). • ‘When attitude and behaviour are dissonant or inconsistent the discomfort associated with that dissonance motivates people to act to reduce it’ (Woods and West, 2010).

9. Cognitive Dissonance • The term given to the discomfort felt when we act in a way that is inconsistent with our true beliefs • It suggest we are motivated to reduce its impact • Dependant on key factors: Why the attitude is held in the first place Why it should change What are the benefits and to whom What the outcomes are if it does not change (Mullins, 2010)

10. Attitudes in organisations Influenced by: • cultural factors (norms and values) • behaviour of management (management style) • policies (e.g. pay, recognition, promotion, work life balance) • influence of ‘reference group’ (the group with whom people identify) (Armstrong, 2010)

11. How can attitudes be changed?(Kelman, 1958) • Providing new Information • Use of fear • Resolving discrepancies • Influence of friends and peers • Co-opting

12. Job Satisfaction “When people speak of employee attitudes, they usually mean job satisfaction – which describes a positive feeling about a job, resulting from an evaluation of its characteristics” (Robbins & Judge, 2013) High level of job satisfaction = positive feelings Low level = negative feelings

13. Related to Job Satisfaction • Job involvement • Measures the degree to which people identify psychologically with their job (care about what they do) • Psychological empowerment • Employee’s belief’s in the degree to which they influence their work environment (perceived autonomy) • Organisational Commitment • The degree to which an employee identifies with a particular organisation, and its goals and wishes to maintain membership (Robbins & Judge, 2013)

14. Related to Job Satisfaction • Perceived Organisational Support • The degree to which employees believe an organisation values their contribution and cares about their well-being • Employee Engagement • An individual’s involvement with, satisfaction with, and enthusiasm for the work he/she does (Robbins & Judge, 2013)

15. Measuring Job Satisfaction: Employee Attitude Surveys • A way of attempting to gauge the attitudinal climate of the organisation and monitor the views of members of staff. ‘A planned procedure which enables an organisation to obtain the opinions of its employees on a particular issue or on the organisation itself, so as to take account of them in the planning process or make changes beneficial to the organisation and individuals alike’ (Chartered Management Institute)

16. What causes Job Satisfaction? Money?

17. Impact of Job Satisfaction (Robbins & Judge, 2013)

18. Implications for Managers • Happy workers are likely to be productive workers • Satisfied employees talk more positively about their organisation, help others and go beyond the expected • Satisfied employees increase customer satisfaction and loyalty • Dissatisfied employees have higher absence rates (very weak correlation) • Job dissatisfaction is more likely to translate into turnover and undesirable behaviours