Running Head: SPIRITUALITY AND JOB STATISFACTION a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a
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Relationship between Spirituality and Job Satisfaction in the Workplace
December 17,2022
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Abstract
In contemporary times, the topic relating to job satisfaction and spirituality has gained
considerable attention. The topic has gained value and gratitude among professionals and
academicians alike (Hassan et al., 2016), the areas are being researched to understand how
spirituality impacts the job satisfaction of professionals. The study has been conducted to find
the association between the variables – spirituality and job satisfaction. The in-depth analysis of
the primary data has shed light on the fact that spirituality is a key predictor of job satisfaction.
In the hectic times, managers must support the spiritual growth of their subordinates so that
their satisfaction in the workplace can improve. a
Introduction
Spirituality refers to the identification of feelings or the belief that there exists something
greater than oneself. A person who is spiritual understands that his or her life has a meaning
beyond his mundane existence. Spiritual individuals are considered to be the ones who are able
to explore specific universal themes such as compassion, love, wisdom, etc at a deeper level
(Spencer, 2012). The concept of job satisfaction has attained considerable attention these days.
It can be defined as the level of contentment that employees feel toward their work. It goes
beyond the normal duties that employees need to perform in their workplace (Van & Klerk,
2014). A number of researchers such as Walt and Klerk (2014), and Hassan and Nadeem
(2016), have conducted studies to explore the relationship between spirituality and job
satisfaction(Hassan et al., 2016). Klerk has argued that there exists a positive association
between workplace spirituality and satisfaction. Spirituality plays a major role in the workplace
since it expands the perspective of the staff members and assists them in surviving in the highly
SPIRITUALITY AND JOB STATISFACTION a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a
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dynamic and competitive work environment. Hassan has stated that spirituality enables staff
members to establish a sense of connection in the work setting, which fosters feelings of
cooperation and harmony. The spirituality of staff positively impacts the organizational culture
and behaviour of the staff (Hassan et al., 2016). a a
Aim and objectives
The primary aim of the study is to explore the relationship between spirituality and job
satisfaction in the workplace. By finding the interlink between these variables, it will be
possible to understand whether the job satisfaction of professionals can be strengthened or not
through spirituality. The following objectives have been designed in the study context so that
the aim can be attained:
• To explore the concept of spirituality and its relevance in the workplace
• To find the relationship between spirituality and job satisfaction in the workplace
Literature
Job satisfaction of individuals is influenced by a host of factors. The research in work
psychology area has revealed that spirituality plays an instrumental role in influencing how
satisfied professionals are in their workplace (Bella et al., 2021). According to Forsythe (2016),
there exists a positive association between the spirituality of individuals and their job
satisfaction (Forsythe, 2016) . Vohra has identified specific spirituality components such as the
meaning as well as purpose in work, recognition of inner self and interconnected which play a
key role in moulding the job satisfaction of professionals (Belwalkar et al., 2018). By working
on spirituality, deviant behavior can be prevented among staff members of organizations. Thus,
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it can positively impact the work climate and contribute to better job satisfaction at an
integrated level (Ahmad & Omar, 2014).
Research Methodology
For conducting the research study to capture the relationship between spirituality and job
satisfaction in the workplace, the quantitative research design has been adopted. Quantitative
research design is extremely popular in the research context since it enables researchers to
collect quantifiable data to address research questions.
Primary data has been gathered from respondents on the research topic. As the topic is
of high relevance in the contemporary work setting, first-hand or primary data has been
identified as the main data type. The questionnaire has been used as the main research tool to
collect primary data. Random sampling method has been identified so that the possibility of bias
or prejudice can be avoided. High emphasis has been laid on ethical dimensions such as
informed consent, confidentiality and privacy of the respondents, integrity, transparency and
objectivity (Bos, 2020).
The chief variables that have been identified while conducting the study are spirituality
and job satisfaction. Spirituality has been identified as the independent variable, whereas job
satisfaction has been identified as the dependent variable in the study. The association between
these variables has been determined by using regression analysis. In the research context, it is
vital for researchers to capture the correlation between dependent and independent variables so
that better insight can be gained to understand whether there exists a cause-and-effect
relationship or not (Thanoon et al., 2015).
Results of the study
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Descriptive statistics have been used in the study to ascertain the association between
spirituality and job satisfaction.
Frequencies a
For the gender or sex variable, the frequency statistics have been used because it is a
categorical variable. Since the categories are not in order, the descriptive statistics would not
have served any purpose.
Table 1
a a a a a a a a a a a a a Statistics
Sex
N
Valid Data
Missing
20
0
a
The table highlights that a total of 20 participants had participated in the study, and there
is no missing information. Out of the 20 participants ,10 belonged to the male category and 10
belong to female categories . Thus the male % was 50 % and the female % was also 50 %.
Descriptive Analysis
On the basis of the descriptive analysis, it has been identified that the age of the
youngest participant was 18 years, whereas the age of the oldest participant was 56 years.
Hypothesis testing a
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Statistics analysis was used in the study for testing the significance of the association
between spirituality and job satisfaction. According to the reviewed literature, it has been
projected that there exists a significant positive association between the two variables. The
simple regression method has been used to capture the association between spirituality
(independent variable) and job satisfaction (dependent variable) which are both quantitative
variables.
Table 3
Descriptive Statistics
Mean
Std. Deviation
N
Job satisfactory
68.50
16.195
20
Spirituality
90.70
26.232
20
The table gives an insight into the descriptive summary of the independent and
dependent variables. The Mean Job Satisfaction is 68.50, and the standard deviation is 16.19.
The mean spirituality among the respondents is 90.70 the standard deviation is 26.23.
Table 4
Model Summary
Model
R
R Square
Adjusted R Square
Std. The error in
the Estimate
1
.642a
.412
.379
12.758
a. Predictors: (Constant), spirituality
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The table captures the regression model’s goodness of fit. The model’s coefficient of R2
is 0.412, which implies that there is 41.2 % variation on terms of job satisfaction. The
coefficient correlation indicates a moderate positive association between spirituality and job
satisfaction. When spirituality increases by one unit, the job satisfaction increases by 0.642
units.
Table 5
ANOVA
Model
Sum of
Squares
df
Mean
Square
F
Sig.
1
Regression
2053.109
1
2053.109
12.613
.002b
Residual
2929.891
18
162.772
Total
4983.000
19
Table 5 captures ANOVA relating to the regression model. According to the ANOVA
results, spirituality is a vital predictor of job satisfaction at the 0.05 significance level. This
evidence is enough to reject the null hypothesis. So, it can be concluded that the spiritual level
is vital to ascertain workers’ job satisfaction.
Table 6
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Coefficients
Model
Unstandardized
Coefficients
Standardized
Coefficients
t
Sig.
B
Std. Error
Beta
1
(Constant)
32.558
10.515
3.096
.006
Spirituality
.396
.112
.642
3.552
.002
a. Dependent Variable: Job satisfactory
The table presents the coefficient of the model. It can be observed that the job
satisfaction score for completely non-spiritual workers was M = 32.56, SE = 10.52. The job
satisfaction rose by 0.396 for the rise in spirituality by a single unit. The table even captures the
importance of spirituality for predicting workers’ job satisfaction.
Discussion
In the study, a sample of 10 males and 10 females have been selected to capture the
association between spirituality and job satisfaction in the workplace. The regression analysis
has been used for investigating the relationship between the variables. The results of regression
analysis indicate that spirituality can influence and help in predicting job satisfaction
considerably. It accounted for 41.2 % of job satisfaction-related variation. a a
The findings of the study are aligned with Dennis et al. (2003) since his work has also
revealed that there exists a significant positive correlation between religious aspects and job
satisfaction. His study included participants from around 38 nations. It noted that religious
employees consider their work, a form of service to others which increases their level of
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satisfaction. The current study’s results also get support from Horvath (2015), who has found
that bank CEOs who are religious have higher work satisfaction than non-religious bank CEOs.
There exists a positive association between job satisfaction and spirituality due to the high level
of trust that exists in spiritual leaders. It improves their job performance and satisfaction level.
Koenig and Bussing have also shared similar findings. According to their study, spiritual staff
members have better physical health, including BMI as compared to non-spiritual staff. The
study also found that the association was mediated by job satisfaction.
The study has revealed a significant association between spirituality and job satisfaction.
But the results are restricted by the scales that have been used for measuring the variables. No
tests were conducted to establish the association between validity and reliability dimensions.
Hence there is a possibility that the scales may not measure the intended elements of job
satisfaction and spirituality.
The study has implications for business owners and managers. The results show that job
satisfaction can be improved by adopting spiritual practice. As job satisfaction can improve job
efficiency, managers must encourage spirituality among their staff to boost job satisfaction.
Similar studies can be conducted to examine the association between spirituality and the
psychological health of individuals. The research can add value as there are a high number of
people with mental health issues.
Conclusion and recommendation
The research study centres around the concept of spirituality and job satisfaction in the
workplace. On the basis of the study, it has been identified that spirituality is a key predictor of
job satisfaction among workers. The employees who are spiritual are able to derive a higher
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level of satisfaction from their work as compared to professionals who are not spiritual in
nature. The insight that has been captured from the study is of high relevance in the practical
work setting since managers can promote the spirituality of their staff and subordinates to
improve their satisfaction level.
The main recommendation that has been made based on the findings of the study is that
employers and managers need to conduct workshops that centre around the spiritual growth of
their staff. It can help to cultivate positive values in the staff and strengthen the organizational
climate.
References
Ahmad, A., & Omar, Z. (2014). Reducing deviant behavior through workplace spirituality and
job satisfaction. Asian Social Science, 10(19), 107.
Belwalkar, S., Vohra, V., & Pandey, A. (2018). The relationship between workplace spirituality,
job satisfaction and organizational citizenship behaviors–an empirical study. Social
Responsibility Journal.
Bos, J. (2020). Research Ethics Step by Step. In Research Ethics for Students in the Social
Sciences (pp. 227-273). Springer, Cham.
SPIRITUALITY AND JOB STATISFACTION a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a
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Bella, R. L. F., Quelhas, O. L. G., Ferraz, F. T., Barboza, D. V., & França, S. L. B. (2021). An
initial approach to increase job satisfaction through workplace spirituality. Frontiers in
psychology, 4902.
Forsythe, G. L. (2016). Spirituality and job satisfaction: A correlational study of elementary
school teachers (Doctoral dissertation, University of La Verne).
Hassan, M., Bin Nadeem, A., & Akhter, A. (2016). Impact of workplace spirituality on job
satisfaction: Mediating effect of trust. Cogent Business & Management, 3(1), 1189808.
Spencer, M. (2012). What is spirituality? A personal exploration. Retrieved March, 16, 2020.
Thanoon, T. Y., Adnan, R., & Saffari, S. E. (2015). Study of the Relationship between
Dependent and Independent Variable Groups by Using Canonical Correlation Analysis
with Application. Modern Applied Science, 9(8), 72.
Van der Walt, F., & De Klerk, J. J. (2014). Workplace spirituality and job satisfaction.
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