CHAPTER 2

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES

This chapter presents the foreign literatures, related literatures

and local literatures.

Related Literature

Work constitutes more than one-third of waking life for most

human adults, and there is a substantial psychological literature devoted

to the study of work. Satisfaction with work varies widely across

individuals (Staw & Ross, 1985) and seems to constitute a substantial

part of the subjective quality of life (Loscocco & Roschelle, 1991).

The workplace environment plays a crucial role for the employees.

Nowadays employees may have a large number working alternatives,

then the environment in the workplace becomes a critical factor for

accepting and/or keeping the jobs. The quality of environment in the

workplace may simply determine the level of employee motivation,

subsequent performance and productivity (Journal of Business,

Economics & Finance Vol.1 2012)

Extensive scientific research conducted by Roelofsen (2002) has

also yielded indications suggesting that improving working environment

results in a reduction in a number of complaints and absenteeism and

an increase in productivity. The indoor environment has the biggest

effect on productivity in relation to job stress and job dissatisfaction.

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Sekar (2011) argues that the relationship between work, the workplace

and the tools of work, the workplacebecomes an integral part of the work

itself. The management that dictate how, exactly, to maximize employee

productivity center around two major areas of focus: personal motivation

and the infrastructure of the work environment (Sekar, C.2011).

Motivation

Luthans (1998) asserts that motivation should not be thought of as

the only explanation of behavior, since it interacts with and acts in

conjunction with other mediating processes and with the environment.

Luthan stress that, like the other cognitive process, motivation cannot be

seen. All that can be seen is behavior, and this should not be equated

with causes of behavior. While recognizing the central role of motivation,

Evans (1998) states that many recent theories of organizational behavior

find it important for the field to re-emphasize behavior. Definitions of

motivation abound. One thing these definitions have in common is the

inclusion of words such as "desire" , "want" , "wishes" , "aim" , "goals",

"needs" , and "incentives". Luthan (1998) defines motivation as, “a

process that starts with a physiological deficiency or need that activates

a behavior or a drive that is aimed at a goal incentive”. Therefore, the

key to understanding the process of motivation lies in the meaning of,

and relationship between, needs, drives, and incentives.

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Employees are motivated by learning and should likewise be

motivated to learn. Workers should be offered regular opportunities to

attend conferences in their field, seminars, or in-house training

programs (Buhler, 1998). A motivating environment may produce

satisfying employees, which in turn may make many employees happy. A

motivating environment exists with conditions of high standards, clear

objectives, adequate training, effective leadership, rewards that

employees value, and adequate working conditions (Capozzoli, 1998).

Motivation is a human psychological characteristic that

contributes to a person's degree of commitment (Stoke, 1999). It includes

the factors that cause, channel, and sustain human behavior in a

particular committed direction. Stoke, in Adeyemo (1999) goes on to say

that there are basic assumptions of motivation practices by managers

which must be understood. First, that motivation is commonly assumed

to be a good thing. One cannot feel very good about oneself if one is not

motivated. Second, motivation is one of several factors that go into a

person's performance (e.g., as a librarian). Factors such as ability,

resources, and conditions under which one performs are also important.

Third, managers and researchers alike assume that motivation is in

short supply and in need of periodic replenishment. Fourth, motivation is

a tool with which managers can use in organizations. If managers know

what drives the people working for them, they can tailor job assignments

and rewards to what makes these people “tick”. Motivation can also be
 17

conceived of as whatever it takes to encourage workers to perform by

fulfilling or appealing to their needs.

Finally, self-motivation requires taking responsibility for one’s

successes and failures (Wolmarans and Martins, 2001). Self-motivation

refers to the ability to create a challenging vision and set goals, and is

also the ability to remain focused and optimistic despite any setbacks

that may occur in obtaining set goals. Self-motivation means taking

action every day and remaining committed to a particular cause.

Luthans (1998) emphasizes that motivation is the process that

arouses, energizes, directs, and sustains behavior and performance. That

is, it is the process of stimulating people to action and to achieve a

desired task. One way of stimulating people is to employ effective

motivation, which makes workers more satisfied with and committed to

their jobs. Money is not the only motivator. There are other incentives

which can also serve as motivators.

Job Satisfaction

Job satisfaction is a worker’s sense of achievement and success on

the job. It is generally perceived to be directly linked to productivity as

well as to personal well-being. Job satisfaction implies doing a job one

enjoys, doing it well and being rewarded for one’s efforts. Job satisfaction

further implies enthusiasm and happiness with one’s work. Job

satisfaction is the key ingredient that leads to recognition, income,

 18

promotion, and the achievement of other goals that lead to a feeling of

fulfillment (Kaliski, 2007).

Job satisfaction is the collection of feeling and beliefs that people

have about their current job. People’s levels of degrees of job satisfaction

can range from extreme satisfaction to extreme dissatisfaction. In

addition to having attitudes about their jobs as a whole, people also can

have attitudes about various aspects of their jobs such as the kind of

work they do, their coworkers, supervisors or subordinates and their pay

(George et al., 2008).

Locke and Lathan (1976) give a comprehensive definition of job

satisfaction as pleasurable or positive emotional state resulting from the

appraisal of one’s job or job experience. Job satisfaction is a result of

employee's perception of how well their job provides those things that are

viewed as important. According to (Mitchell and Lasan, 1987), it is

generally recognized in the organizational behavior field that job

satisfaction is the most important and frequently studied attitude. While

Luthan (1998) posited that, there are three important dimensions to job

satisfaction:

 Job satisfaction is an emotional response to a job situation. As

such, it cannot be seen, it can only be inferred.

 Job satisfaction is often determined by how well outcome meet or

exceed expectations. For instance, if organization participants feel

that they are working much harder than others in the department,
 19

but are receiving fewer rewards they will probably have a negative

attitudes towards the work, the boss and or coworkers. On the

other hand, if they feel they are being treated very well and are

being paid equitably, they are likely to have positive attitudes

towards the job.

 Job satisfaction represents several related attitudes which are

most important characteristics of a job about which people have

effective response. These to Luthans are: the work itself, pay,

promotion opportunities, supervision and coworkers.

Job satisfaction is so important in that its absence often leads to

lethargy and reduced organizational commitment (Levinson, 1997,

Moser, 1997). Lack of job satisfaction is a predictor of quitting a job

(Alexander, Litchtenstein and Hellmann, 1997; Jamal, 1997). Sometimes

workers may quit from the public to the private sector and vice versa. At

the other times the movement is from one profession to another that is

considered a greener pasture. This latter is common in countries

grappling with dwindling economy and its concomitant such as poor

conditions of service and late payment of salaries (Nwagwu, 1997).

Productivity

To achieve high levels of employee productivity, organizations must

ensure that the physical environment is conducive to organizational

needs, facilitating interaction and privacy, formality and informality,

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functionality and cross-disciplinarily. Consequently, the physical

environment is a tool that can be leveraged both to improve business

results (Mohr, 1996) and employee well-being (Huang, Robertson and

Chang, 2004).

Ensuring adequate facilities are provided to employees is critical to

generating greater employee commitment and productivity. The provision

of inadequate equipment and adverse working conditions has been

shown to affect employee commitment and intention to stay with the

organization (Weiss, 1999; Wise, Darling-Hammondand Berry, 1987) as

well as levels of job satisfaction and the perception of fairness of pay

(Bockerman and Ilmakunnas, 2006).

As a finding of a study (Lamm, Massey, Perry, 2006) there is

increasing and compelling evidence that providing a healthy and safe

working environment has the potential to increase labour productivity

and in turn increase business profits.

Research has shown that productivity at a workplace is

highest where there are positive and constructive employment

relationships between managers and owners, and employees and their

representatives (http://union.org.nz).

Goetzel (2010) in his study reached the conclusion that the

relationship between employee health and safety in the workplace with

productivity is significant. Appelabum (2005) stated that the factors

affecting in human resources productivity included increasing

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communication between staff and managers as well as participation in

organizational decisions.

Productivity is maximized when there is enough balance so that

employees have enough control, authority, and permissions to make

most operational decisions. Barry P. Haynes, (2012) stated that

technology, tools, and equipment can limit or bolster productivity. Even

highly trained, motivated, and engaged employees can’t be very

productive when they are provided with insufficient tools and equipment

to do their job. In an era where technology dominates almost every

function, a failure to provide the technology, updates, or sufficient

training can dramatically slow productivity.

Employee productivity depends on the amount of time an

individual is physically present at a job and also the degree to which he

or she is “mentally present” or efficiently functioning while present at a

job. Companies must address both of these issues in order to maintain

high worker productivity, and this may occur through a variety of

strategies that focus on employee satisfaction, health, and morale

(Corporate Leadership Council, Utilizing Employee Opinion Surveys to

Improve Business Performance)

Related Studies

Job satisfaction is a worker’s sense of achievement and success on

the job. It is generally perceived to be directly linked to productivity as

 22

well as to personal well-being. Job satisfaction implies doing a job one

enjoys, doing it well and being rewarded for one’s efforts. Job satisfaction

further implies enthusiasm and happiness with one’s work. Job

satisfaction is the key ingredient that leads to recognition, income,

promotion, and the achievement of other goals that lead to a feeling of

fulfillment (Kaliski, 2007). A study was conducted on Employee

satisfaction in cement industry of Chhattisgarh by Daljeet Singh

Wadhwa, Manoj Verghese & Dalvinder Singh Wadhwa (September 2011).

This study focused on three factors namely behavioural, organizational

and environmental factors. The report focused on all of these factors and

attempted to find the relation between these factors and employee job

satisfaction and it was found that all the three factors have a positive

impact on job satisfaction.

Research shows that flexible work arrangements may reduce stress

because employees working flexibly are more satisfied with their jobs,

more satisfied with their lives, and experience better work-family balance

(Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development 2008).

Participation in formal arrangements that involve flexitime

promotes a sense among workers that they have the discretion to fit job-

related responsibilities into their broader lives, and this discretion

contributes to less stress and burnout. A study of more than 19,000

employees at nine distinct companies (in the pharmaceutical, technical,

manufacturing, financial, and professional services sectors and in a

 23

university) showed that stress and burnout was lower among workers

engaged in all types of workplace flexibility arrangements (Grzywacz, J.

G., Carlson, D. S., & Shulkin, S. 2008).

According to Brookfield (1998), individuals with high levels of job

satisfaction would have healthier physical and psychological records that

very likely result in higher productivity and effectiveness in their job

performance and will staying longer in organization. Also, studies have

consistently reported that job satisfaction is one of the factors or reasons

for employee intentions to leave the organization (Price, 2001). Hence, job

satisfaction can be a determinant of employee’s motivation and intention

to stay or leave the organization. In addition, research suggests that job

satisfaction involves two dimensions: (i) Intrinsic; and (ii) Extrinsic

factors (Hancer and George, 2003; Holt, 1993). Intrinsic and extrinsic

types of motivation have been widely studied and the distinction between

them has played an important role on both developmental and

educational practices.

Other studies indicate that companies found the following from

their efforts to study the links between employee satisfaction, customer

satisfaction, productivity, and financial performance: (Baxter W. Graham,

1996)

• Unhappy employees are less productive and more likely to have

higher absence rates

• Satisfied employees are more productive, innovative, and loyal

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• Increases in job satisfaction lead to increases in employee

morale, which lead to increased employee productivity

• Employee satisfaction leads to customer retention

Local Literature

Job Satisfaction

Job satisfaction is a complex and multifaceted concept, which can

mean different things to different people. Job satisfaction is usually

linked with motivation, but the nature of this relationship is not clear.

Satisfaction is not the same as motivation. "Job satisfaction is more an

attitude, an internal state. It could, for example, be associated with a

personal feeling of achievement, either quantitative or qualitative." In

recent years attention to job satisfaction has become more closely

associated with broader approaches to improved job design and work

organization, and the quality of working life movement (Buchanan,

2006).

Job satisfaction has been defined as, the attitude of an employee

toward a job, sometimes expressed as a hedonic response of liking or

disliking the work itself, the rewards pay, promotions, recognition, or the

context such as working conditions, benefits (Corsini, 1999 cited by

Tillman, 2008).
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Job satisfaction-perceptions of the fulfilment derived from day-to-

day activities-is associated with job commitment, and with higher levels

of performance at work (Judge, Thoresen, Bono, & Patton, 2001). In

educational contexts, Caprara et al. (2003) labelled job satisfaction a

"decisive element" that influences teachers' attitudes and performance,

and he suggested that self-efficacy and collective efficacy both contribute

to teachers' job satisfaction.

However, teaching is often a stressful occupation, with demands

from administrators, colleagues, students, and parents compounded by

work overload, shifting policies, and a lack of recognition for

accomplishments (Greenglass & Burke, 2003). The outcomes of teachers'

work-related stress are serious and may include burnout, depression,

poor performance, absenteeism, low levels of job satisfaction, and

eventually, the decision to leave the profession (Betoret, 2006; Jepson &

Forrest, 2006).

In the study of conducted by Federico (1996) on the relationship

between communication satisfaction and organizational commitment in

three Guatemalan organizations, it was found out that employees with

more tenure status were significantly more committed to their

organization. Older workers seem report higher levels of job satisfaction

than younger ones. Tenure does not appear to hold the same consistency

in its relationship with job satisfaction. The psychological consequences

of increasing service in a given job are probably more dependent on the

 26

characteristics of the work situation. Hence, in considering the variable

of tenure, one must be careful to attend to the specifics of job situation.

Some studies looked into job satisfaction and performance at work

of shift workers. Job satisfaction is also usually reflected in employees’

complaints. Dissatisfied employees experience more psychological

distress and physical health problems (De Castro 2008). With respect to

job performance, Alfaro et al. (2005) reported in their thesis that among

phone bankers in a banking call center, job performance ratings

significantly vary between shifts. The study noted that majority of phone

bankers did not comply with call handling criteria and significant factors

related to work performance include civil status, previous work

experience in a similar field, average duration of sleep, feelings of fatigue

associated with work duration and rest period, work environment and

motivation.

On 1991, Josephine Tuble of the University of Santo Tomas

Graduate School made a study that concerns the productivity and job

satisfaction of workers in construction company in Metro Manila. These

results to productivity level that was rated overall as “good” due to the

following dimensions: quantity of work, quality of work, supervision

required, attendance, and conservation. Also, the respondents of this

study were neither satisfied nor dissatisfied because of low ratings made

on promotion and pay aspects. In connection with this, the level of

 27

productivity is correlated with jobsatisfaction with regards to the nature

of work, supervision, co-workers relationship and pay aspects.

Moreover, sponsored by the American Studies Association of the

Philippines - Baguio Cordillera Chapter, Antonia CorinthiaNaz

accomplished a study regarding the factors that influences the labor

Productivity of miners in Benguet. With this, it has been found that the

productivity level varies according to mining methods and was

significantly affected by technical factors followed by economic factors

and personal factors. Major problems on labor productivity are: the need

for more involvement in decision-making; thorough discussion on

miners’ concerns; that the company adopts a variety of training methods;

the need to be informed of the policies; the desire of workers for

management to be more sensitive and responsive to workers’ concerns

and the necessity for more and better quality of tools and equipment for

underground work.