THREE FACTORS APPEAR TO HAVE BIG IMPACT ON JOB SATISFACTION

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If you want your workers to be happy, productive and healthy, there are three very important things you can do:

• give them a lot of control over their work
• let them use their talents and skills
• make sure their work is recognized and appreciated.

A new Harris Poll focuses on these three elements of work, the lack of which contributes to "bad stress." Medical research (by Michael Marmot), and even research among monkeys and baboons (discussed in the current bestseller Genome by Matt Ridley), has found very strong links between "bad stress," heart disease and the immune system. And it also seems highly likely that bad stress reduces motivation, employee loyalty and productivity.

This topic is addressed in a nationwide Harris Poll of 695 working adults surveyed by telephone between November 13 and 18.

This new Harris research focuses on three aspects of work which, Marmot's research shows, contribute powerfully to "bad stress": lack of control, lack of recognition and the inability to use one's talents and skills. Unlike people with "good stress" (many of who hold senior positions with power, authority and recognition) people who suffer from "bad stress" tend to be poor, disadvantaged and to have low-level jobs. "Good stress" does not seem to be harmful to one's health.

What this new Harris research shows is that these three indicators of "bad stress" are also very highly correlated with low job satisfaction, and vice-versa:

• Overall, 46% of workers say they have a lot of control over their work; 51% get to use their talents and skills a lot; and 41% feel recognized and appreciated a lot.

• Among those who say they have a lot of control over their work, 60% are very satisfied with their jobs; among those who only have some/not much/no control, only 25% are very satisfied.

• Among those who use their skills and talents a lot, 62% are very satisfied with their jobs; only 14% of those who only use their skills some, a little, or not at all are very satisfied.

• Among those who work who get a lot of recognition and appreciation, fully 68% are very satisfied with their jobs; only 13% of those whose work receives little or no recognition are very satisfied.

Among those who say "a lot" to all three questions, fully 78% are "very satisfied" with their jobs. Among those who say that they only have some, not much or none to all three questions, only 2% are "very satisfied" with their jobs.

Base: All Working

"How much control do you have over the work you do in your job – a lot, quite a lot, some, not much or none?"

Base: All Working

"How much do you think you get to use your talents and skills in your job – a lot, quite a lot, not much, some or none?"

Base: All Working

"How much do you feel that the work you do in your job is recognized and appreciated – a lot, quite a lot, some, not much, or none?"

Base: All Working

"Overall how satisfied are you with your job – very satisfied, somewhat satisfied, not very satisfied, or not at all satisfied?"

Base: All Working

"Overall how satisfied are you with your job – very satisfied, somewhat satisfied, not very satisfied, or not at all satisfied?"

This Harris Poll was conducted by telephone within the United States between November 13 and November 18, 2000, among a nationwide cross section of 695 adults. Figures for age, sex, race, education, number of adults and number of voice/telephone lines in the household were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population.

In theory, one can expect that 95% of surveys with samples of this size would produce results that were within plus or minus 3 percentage points of what they would be if the entire adult population had been polled using the same methods. Unfortunately, there are several other possible sources of error in all polls or surveys that are probably more serious than theoretical calculations of sampling error. They include refusals to be interviewed (non-response), question wording and question order, interviewer bias, weighting by demographic control data and screening (e.g., for likely voters). It is difficult or impossible to quantify the errors that may result from these factors.

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13287
Q315, 320, 325, 330