Search Results

Author: Blue, Beth-Anne
Resulting in 1 citation.
1. Blue, Beth-Anne
Women in the Work Force: Job Satisfaction and Locus of Control from 1968-1991
Ph.D. Dissertation, Pacific Graduate School of Psychology, Palo Alto CA
Cohort(s): Young Women
Publisher: UMI - University Microfilms, Bell and Howell Information and Learning
Keyword(s): Ethnic Groups/Ethnicity; Job Satisfaction; Locus of Control (see Rotter Scale); Racial Differences

Today, more than 50% of all women in America work. Psychological studies in the workplace, however, have traditionally focused on men (e.g., D'Arcy, Syrotnik & Kiddique, 1984; White & Spector, 1987). Among male workers, job satisfaction and life satisfaction are related (e.g., Hesketh & Shouksmith, 1986). Locus of control (Rotter, 1966) is a construct which has also been related to job satisfaction in men (Andrisani & Nestel, 1976). However, working women might conceivably have a more externalized locus of control due to issues of sexual harassment, discrimination, and lower pay for equal work (Unger & Crawford, 1992; Betz & Fitzgerald, 1987) which are often outside of a woman's control. To date, there are few studies which examine the relationships among job satisfaction, life satisfaction and locus of control among working women. Thus, the following study was conducted.The purpose of this study was to investigate the degree to which job satisfaction, life satisfaction and locus of control are related in a population of working women. Using a subject pool of over 5000 women who have been tracked since 1968 by the United States Department of Labor, the following was found. Job satisfaction was related to life satisfaction, in that those most satisfied with their jobs were most satisfied with their lives. Locus of control was related to both job and life satisfaction: (1) those who were most satisfied with their jobs were the most internally controlled; and (2) those who were most satisfied with life were also the most internally controlled. Using multivariate statistics, results indicate that ethnicity plays an important intermediary role in understanding the relationships between locus of control and job and life satisfaction, with African-American respondents being more externally controlled, more dissatisfied with their jobs and more dissatisfied with their lives than whites. Longitudinal data examined trends in job satisfaction, life satisfaction and locus of control over the years 1968-1991. The most significant trend revealed in longitudinal analyses was that job satisfaction significantly decreased for women between 1971-1978.
Bibliography Citation
Blue, Beth-Anne. Women in the Work Force: Job Satisfaction and Locus of Control from 1968-1991. Ph.D. Dissertation, Pacific Graduate School of Psychology, Palo Alto CA.