Occupational Psychology. 1973, 47, 71 74
Intrinsic and extrinsic job satisfaction and labour turnover
A questionnaire study of Australian managers
ROBERT SPILLANE School of Behavioural Sciences, Maequarie University, North Ryde, NSW
The Herzberg Iwo-factor theory of job salisfaction was studied in relation lo labour turnover. Ratings of satisfaction for intrinsic and extrinsic job factors. together with reasons for remaining with or leaving organisations were obtained from a group of middle managers who had recently resigned from their jobs and a contrasting group who had been in their jobs for at least twelvt: months. There were no significam differences between the two groups in job satisfaction scores. Reasons given for remaining wilh organisations involved the same job factors as Ihe reasons for leaving them.
RECENT RESEARCH in the field of job satisfaction has been strongly influenced by the theory developed by Herzberg, Mausner and Snyderman (1959) based on an intrinsicextrinsic job factor dichotomy. According to this theory the factors leading to job satisfaction are separate and distinct from the factors that lead to job dissatisfaction. These authors concluded that the two sets of factors are discrete,. The intrinsic factors, or satisfiers. refer to what the person does in his job. The extrinsic factors, or dlssatisfiers, relate to the environment in which he does his job. Herzberg (1966), in support of his theory, quoted a study in which the twofactor approach to job satisfaction was examined in relation to labour turnover (Friedlanderand Walton 1964). These authors had hypothesised that the reasons for remaining with an organisation differ from (and are not merely opposite to) the reasons for which one might leave an organisation. Their results supported this argument and the authors concluded that the reasons for remaining with an organisation are concerned primarily with intrinsic job factors and the reasons for leaving relate primarily to...