Title:
Understanding the gender difference in job satisfaction: A work orientation perspective

Abstract:

There has been a ‘grateful slaves’ paradox in the job satisfaction literature. Women, although argued to be in a relatively disadvantaged position in the labour market, are more satisfied with their job than men. This paper approaches this paradox from a work orientations perspective. Using data from two British nationally representative surveys, the analysis yields three major findings on gender difference in job satisfaction. The first is that women, either in full-time or part-time employment, do present significantly higher levels of job satisfaction. Secondly, there are some differences in ‘taste’ that shapes job satisfaction between male/female full-time workers and female part-time workers. Finally, and most importantly, the differences in work orientations between male workers, female full-timers and female part-timers can completely account for the observed gender satisfaction differential.