A Comparison of Co-Worker Job Satisfaction

Objective

The objective of this exercise is to gain an understanding of the factors which influence job satisfaction and to become familiar with a commonly used measure of job satisfaction.

Procedure

Find a colleague at work* who is willing to complete the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire (MSQ) and discuss issues about the workplace openly. Tell your colleague the plan before you begin and allow him or her to decide whether or not to participate; provide assurance that responses are confidential. Also, complete the scale yourself. To the best of your ability, group the items into Motivator and Hygiene factors and calculate the average rating for those items for both you and your co-worker. (Note: Not every item may clearly fit into those categories, so it is not necessary to group all of the items.) 

Product

Begin your 3-5 page paper by describing the MSQ. Include a table showing the scores for each of the items. Describe the following theories and discuss the MSQ scores in light of these theories: Two-factor theory (motivator/hygiene), value theory, and dispositional theory. Include in your paper anything else you discovered or found particularly interesting.

If you do not currently work or work alone, you may try contacting a former co-worker; alternatively, you may find two people who work in the same organization who are willing to participate.