Job Satisfaction Relative to Expectations Scale

Abstract

The Job Satisfaction Relative to Expectations scale (JSRTE) is a psychometric instrument developed by Bacharach, Bamberger, and Conley in 1991. Its primary function is to quantify the disparity between an employee’s perceived quality of various job aspects and their initial expectations regarding the position. This measure is particularly valuable in the field of Organizational Behavior, as it helps researchers understand the degree to which workplace stressors, such as role conflict, role ambiguity, or job stress, actively impede the fulfillment of professional expectations.

Keywords

Job Satisfaction, Expectations, Role Conflict, Role Ambiguity, Organizational Behavior, Work Stress, Psychometric Scale, Bacharach.

Authors

Samuel B. Bacharach, Peter Bamberger, Sharon Conley.

Purpose

The principal purpose of the JSRTE scale is to provide a focused assessment of job satisfaction that is explicitly context-dependent upon the individual’s pre-employment or career expectations. Unlike absolute measures of satisfaction, this scale zeroes in on the gap between the expected ideal state of the job and the experienced reality.

By framing satisfaction relative to expectations, the measure becomes a diagnostic tool for understanding the impact of specific organizational stressors. For instance, high scores on measures of role conflict or role ambiguity should theoretically correlate with a larger negative gap between expectations and reality, leading to lower relative satisfaction scores.

Construct

The scale measures Job Satisfaction Relative to Expectations, a specific psychological construct situated within the broader domain of job attitudes. The construct posits that satisfaction is not solely derived from objective job characteristics but is heavily mediated by the subjective framework of expectations that an employee brings to the role.

This approach moves beyond simple affective reactions to the job environment by assessing cognitive discrepancies. The five items collectively address satisfaction across key domains: comparison to organizational peers, progress toward personal goals, utilization of core competencies, initial job expectations, and long-term career expectations.

Validity

Initial validation studies conducted by Bacharach et al. (1991) provided evidence of the measure’s construct validity through its relationship with established organizational stressors. Specifically, Job Satisfaction Relative to Expectations demonstrated significant negative correlations with several key variables.

• Role Conflict: Employees experiencing greater conflicting demands reported lower relative satisfaction.
• Role Overload: Higher levels of work demands correlated negatively with the fulfillment of expectations.
• Work-Home Conflict: Interference between professional and personal life was associated with decreased satisfaction relative to initial expectations.

Reliability

The internal consistency of the JSRTE scale was established during its development. Bacharach, Bamberger, and Conley (1991) reported strong reliability statistics for the five-item instrument.

The calculated Coefficient alpha (Cronbach’s alpha) for the scale was reported as .88. This value is well above the commonly accepted threshold of .70 for psychometric instruments, indicating high internal consistency among the items, meaning they reliably measure the same underlying construct.

Factor Analysis

The original publication by Bacharach et al. (1991) utilized the scale as a unidimensional measure of job satisfaction relative to expectations. Specific details regarding exploratory or confirmatory factor analysis (EFA/CFA) confirming the single factor structure across diverse samples were not explicitly detailed in the provided source material.

Given the high Coefficient alpha, it is presumed that the five items load onto a single, cohesive factor representing the discrepancy between perceived job reality and expectations.

Instrument

Test Type: Psychometric Self-Report Scale

Format: Five items utilizing a Likert-type scale.

Language Available: English (Original publication language).

Population Group: Employed Adults (Specifically tested on Nurses and Engineers in the initial study).

Age Group: Adult working population.

Population Details: Initial validation sample included professionals in high-stress roles, such as nurses and engineers, focusing on the mediating impact of role stress on burnout and satisfaction.

Test Methodology: Responses are collected using a 4-point Likert-type scale ranging from 1 = very dissatisfied to 4 = very satisfied. Higher scores indicate greater satisfaction relative to expectations.

Keywords

Job Attitudes, Expectancy Theory, Organizational Psychology, Burnout, Role Overload, Professional Expectations, Survey Instrument.

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not reported in source.

Affiliation Email addresses: Not reported in source.

Correspondence Address: Not reported in source.

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The scale was first published in 1991. The items were reproduced by permission of John Wiley & Sons Limited, which holds the copyright for the original publication in the Journal of Organizational Behavior. Users wishing to administer the scale must secure necessary permissions from the copyright holder, depending on the research or commercial context.

Reference’s

Bacharach, S., Bamberger, P., & Conley, S. (1991). Work-home conflict among nurses and engineers: Mediating the impact of role stress on burnout and satisfaction with work. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 12, 39-53. Items were taken from text, p. 45. Copyright© 1991. Reproduced by permission of John Wiley & Sons Limited.

Items of the Job Satisfaction Relative to Expectations scale

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

Responses are obtained using a 4-point Likert-type scale where 1 = very dissatisfied and 4 = very satisfied.

1. Your present job when you compare it to others in the organization
2. The progress you are making toward the goals you set for yourself in your present position
3. The chance your job gives you to do what you are best at
4. Your present job when you consider the expectations you had when you took the job
5. Your present job in light of your career expectations