Do spending comparisons affect spending and satisfaction?

We investigate the effect of spending comparisons with a new survey approach that asks respondents about satisfaction and expenditure decisions, both before and after they receive hypothetical information about what others in their communities are spending. We ask about four goods which vary in observability—wine served at a dinner party, an uncle's funeral, life insurance, and a donation to a non-profit organization. Compared to respondents who were told that others in their community were spending more than they, respondents told that others were spending less tended both to reduce their spending and increase their satisfaction.     

Does similarity breed marital and sexual satisfaction?

This study examined the effect of socioeconomic-cultural homogamy on the marital and sexual satisfaction of Hong Kong Chinese couples. Using a representative, territory-wide sample of 1,083 first-time married heterosexual couples, this study found that wives were generally less satisfied than their husbands with their marital and sexual relationships. Husbands were more likely to be satisfied with their marriages when they were two to four years older than their wives than when they were of similar age to their wives (i.e., within one year of each other), but they were less likely to be satisfied with their marriages when only their wives were employed than when both partners were employed. In addition, they were less likely to be satisfied with both their marital and sexual relationships when their wives were five or more years older. Wives with an older husband were more likely to be sexually satisfied than wives of the same age as their husband, but they were less likely to be satisfied with their marriages when they were better educated than their husbands. The implications of the findings are discussed.     

Local union leaders’ satisfaction with grievance procedures

We develop a model of local union leaders’ satisfaction with their grievance proce-dures drawing from the job characteristics model and agency theory. The model is tested with OLS regression and LISREL estimates based on a survey of local union leaders in British Columbia. Results show that local union leaders are more satisfied with their grievance procedures when local officials have more autonomy in decision making; their local size is smaller; the grievance filing rate is low; grievance issues are perceived as important; the grievance resolution rate is high; a greater propor-tion of grievances are settled in the early steps; and the union success rate is high. In addition, grievance procedure satisfaction is multifaceted and each facet has its own unique variance and a different combination of significant predictors. This research was supported by a grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. We thank Dev Jennings for his helpful comments on an earlier version.     

Reported job satisfaction: what does it mean?

We emphasize the major influences of experienced utility gaps or regret, i.e. the difference between what happened and what might have happened, on job satisfaction. The main prediction that we test is that job satisfaction correlates with the wage gaps experienced in the past and present, holding other job-related satisfactions constant, with the possible exception of young workers. We further test that this effect of wage gaps on job satisfaction declines with working experience. We find evidence on a Canadian cross-section that the past matters.     

Sexual satisfaction and sexual self‐disclosure within dating relationships

This study examined dating individuals' self‐disclosure about their sexual likes and dislikes to their partner. Forty‐seven college men and 52 college women in a dating relationship of 3 to 36 months completed a questionnaire measuring sexual exchange variables, sexual satisfaction, relationship satisfaction, sexual communication satisfaction, and sexual and non‐sexual self‐disclosure with their partner. Both sexual and nonsexual self‐disclosure were at the level of revealing some detail but not fully disclosing personal attitudes and feelings. Participants reported self‐disclosing significantly more about non‐sexual than about sexual topics. Sexual and nonsexual self‐disclosure were related to sexual satisfaction, relationship satisfaction, and sexual communication satisfaction. Sexual self‐disclosure was uniquely related to sexual communication satisfaction when nonsexual self‐disclosure was controlled, but was not uniquely associated with relationship satisfaction or sexual satisfaction. The study provided evidence that both sexual exchanges and relationship satisfaction mediate the relationship between sexual self‐disclosure and sexual satisfaction as proposed by Cupach and Metts (1991). The results of a series of analyses suggest that self‐disclosure affects sexual satisfaction through two routes. First, sexual self‐disclosure may increase sexual rewards in the relationship. Second, it may increase overall relationship satisfaction. Both increased sexual rewards and increased relationship satisfaction, in turn, enhance sexual satisfaction.     

Disentangling the housing satisfaction puzzle: Does homeownership really matter?

There is a general consensus that homeownership has beneficial effects for both individuals and society in many outcomes. However, research regarding the effect of homeownership on individuals’ subjective well-being remains inconclusive. In this paper, for the first time, we provide empirical evidence for the link between homeownership and housing satisfaction using panel data. We use the eight waves of the European Community Household Panel (ECHP) covering the period 1994–2001. We observe that renters who become homeowners not only experience a significant increase in housing satisfaction, but also after changing their tenure status, they obtain a different utility from the same housing context. This evidence might provide support to the hypothesis that a share of the differences in the perceived utility derived from housing can be attributed to (un)fulfilled expectations or aspirations regarding homeownership.     

Is doctor-patient race concordance associated with greater satisfaction with care?

We examined a national sample of African American, white, Hispanic, and Asian American respondents to test the hypothesis that doctor-patient race concordance is predictive of patient satisfaction. Our analysis examined racial/ethnic differences in patient satisfaction among patients in multiple combinations of doctor-patient race/ethnicity pairs. Additionally, we outline the determinants of doctor-patient race concordance. The analysis used the 1994 Commonwealth Fund Minority Health Survey to construct a series of multivariate models. We found that for respondents in each race/ethnic group, patients who had a choice in the selection of their physician were more likely to be race concordant. Whites were more likely to be race concordant with their physician compared to African American, Hispanic, and Asian American respondents. Among each race/ethnic group, respondents who were race concordant reported greater satisfaction with their physician compared with respondents who were not race concordant. These findings suggest support for the continuation of efforts to increase the number of minority physicians, while placing greater emphasis on improving the ability of physicians to interact with patients who are not of their own race.     

Can healthcare providers at a university health clinic predict patient satisfaction?

Patient satisfaction in university health settings has received little research attention, and it is unclear whether the issue is being addressed in college health clinics. Because providers may make their own evaluations of patient satisfaction in the absence of other information, the authors conducted a study to determine whether healthcare providers at a university health clinic could accurately assess patient satisfaction. Ten providers completed a 10-item questionnaire immediately following the medical encounter to rate their perceptions of selected patients' levels of satisfaction. After seeing a healthcare provider, 201 patients completed a comparable questionnaire indicating how satisfied they were with the experience. Responses of providers and patients were compared, using a paired-sample t test. The results showed that providers' ratings were significantly lower than patients' ratings, indicating that providers were unable to judge patient satisfaction accurately. The results suggest that formal evaluations of patient satisfaction should be included in college health services.     

Women's satisfaction with their breast prosthesis: what determines a quality prosthesis?

The aim of this study is to determine what factors constitute a quality prosthesis and ascertain which factors affect prosthesis satisfaction. Sixty-four women who received full funding for their prosthesis and 38 women who received their hospital's usual funding were recruited. Women rated the information provided about breast prostheses very highly, with 85% reporting that it was "very good" or "excellent." Satisfaction was significantly associated with how well the prosthesis fit (1 week, p = .001; 3 months, p = .01), level of comfort (3 months, p=.005), and appearance of the prosthesis when worn (6 months, p = .001). Quality was significantly associated with how well it fit (1 week, p = .001; 3 months, p = .001), how natural it felt (1 week, p = .001; 6 months, p = .01), the weight of the prosthesis (3 months, p = .003), and appearance when worn (6 months, p = .03). The results will be used to improve women's access to a quality prosthesis.     

Do private and public transfers received affect life satisfaction? Evidence from Romania

This paper uses Romanian survey data to investigate the determinants of individual life and financial satisfaction, with an emphasis on the role of public and private transfers received. A possible concern is that these transfers are unlikely to be exogenous to satisfaction. We use recursive simultaneous equations models to account both for this potential problem and for the fact that public transfers are themselves endogenous in the private transfer equation. We find that public transfers received have a positive influence on both life and financial satisfaction, while private transfers do not matter. People receive private transfers irrespective of their economic and demographic characteristics in Romania, which could be explained by some social norm motives.     

Assessment of older adults’ satisfaction with adult protective services investigation and assistance

This study examined elder self-neglect client satisfaction with services provided by an Adult Protective Services (APS) program. A total of 77 community-dwelling older adults with APS-substantiated self-neglect responded to the standardized and widely used 8-item Client Satisfaction Questionnaire. Approximately 75% of the participants reported being satisfied with the overall services. They felt that the services provided were responsive to their need(s) and helped them deal with their problem(s). Greater than 80% responded that they would refer a friend, would utilize APS in the future if necessary, and were at least satisfied with the amount of help received. The extent to which their needs were met received the lowest satisfaction scores. Future studies are needed to examine elder self-neglect client satisfaction in relation to specific services.     

Job satisfaction in social services in Crete,Greece: social workers’ views

This research-based article presents the results of a study examining job satisfaction among social workers in public social services in Crete, Greece. It focuses on their overall job satisfaction, as well as on their satisfaction or dissatisfaction with intrinsic, extrinsic and organisational work aspects. The results of this study suggest that while respondents experienced a quite high level of overall satisfaction with their job, other indicators of job satisfaction showed that the level of job satisfaction was not so high. The main sources of respondents’ satisfaction were intrinsic work aspects while the main sources of dissatisfaction were organisational and extrinsic work aspects. Respondents’ job satisfaction was found to be significantly correlated with: the years of unemployment before respondents first worked as social workers, the number of social workers working in the organisation, and their intention to leave or change their present job.

     

Non‐erotic thoughts: Content and relation to sexual functioning and sexual satisfaction

We examined the possible range of content of non‐erotic thoughts experienced during typical sexual activities with a partner. Undergraduate men (n = 47) and women (n = 50) were administered a measure of non‐erotic thought content, frequency, and anxiety, along with measures of sexual attitude, satisfaction, and functioning. Men were more likely to report performance‐related thoughts, and women were more likely to report thoughts about body image. However, men and women were equally likely to report thoughts about the external consequences of the activity (e.g., pregnancy, being caught) and the emotional consequences of the activity (e.g., morality, implications of the activity for the relationship). Women reported that their thoughts occurred more frequently and caused more anxiety. Greater thought frequency and greater anxiety over thoughts were associated with poorer sexual functioning for both men and women. For women, greater frequency of and anxiety evoked by thoughts was associated with lower sexual satisfaction. These data provide modest support for cognitive‐behavioral models of sexual dysfunction and indicate the importance of both examining a broad range of non‐erotic thought content and taking gender into account when applying these models to understanding and treating sexual difficulties.     

Parental views of in-home services: what predicts satisfaction with child welfare workers?

Evidence on client satisfaction deserves consideration in the design of child welfare policies, programs, and practices. Data in this study come from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being. Clients receiving in-home services reported moderate levels of satisfaction with their child welfare workers. Caregiver reports of having less than two child welfare workers, having more recent contact, and receiving timely, responsive services were associated with higher perceived quality of relationships with child welfare workers. The child welfare workers' reports of cooperativeness by the caregiver were also associated with higher caregiver-reported relationship quality.     

Determinants of work-family balance satisfaction during the pandemic: Insights from Québec

The first wave of the COVID pandemic was the most challenging for employed parents, and more specifically for women. In Québec, research has shown a deterioration in the psychological health of parents in the early weeks of the pandemic. In this research, we investigate how Québec parents who remained employed during the lockdown in 2020 perceived their work-family balance in the stressful context of new earning and caregiving constraints, drawing on survey data collected in May 2020. Our approach integrates insights from psychological, managerial and sociological literatures. We find that most parents who remained employed found their work-family balance “easy” in the first months of the pandemic, but women felt less satisfied with their work-family balance than men as well as those whose employers were less understanding and supportive, and those whose workloads increased. The implications of these results are discussed in the light of previous studies on work-family intersections, to show that gender continues to matter when family members are faced with extraordinary circumstances such as the closing of childcare and schools, even in the egalitarian context of Québec, where fathers are perceived as legitimate caregivers.     

Life satisfaction and desire to emigrate: What does the cross-national analysis show?

Few articles explain how life satisfaction and happiness influence intention to migrate to another country. This study fills the gap by investigating the desire to emigrate in relation to individual life satisfaction while testing for moderation effects of national life satisfaction scores, the Human Development Index and Gender Inequality Index at country level. The empirical analysis is based on the unique Gallup World Poll data for 127 countries in 2017. In line with previous research, the findings confirm a negative association between life satisfaction (both individual and country level) and the desire to emigrate. Furthermore, results point to mean country life satisfaction, human development and gender inequality levels acting as moderators of individual-level life satisfaction on the desire to emigrate. Higher aggregate life satisfaction levels act as counter-forces to individual life satisfaction, performing as enablers of stay versus move. In countries with lower human development and higher gender inequality, individual life satisfaction will act as an enabler to move. A comprehensive discussion includes findings for gender and age groups and those born or not born in the country.     

Work-family culture and job satisfaction: does gender and parenting status alter the relationship?

Previous studies on work-family culture have examined its relationship with different employee outcomes (e.g., work-family conflict, job satisfaction, commitment) but neglected one important question; namely, who are most likely to benefit from a supportive work-family culture in terms of positive employee outcomes? The aim of this study was to shed new light on the work-family culture–job satisfaction linkage by examining the moderator effects of gender and parenting status in this relationship. Specifically, we asked whether gender and parenting status would alter the association between work-family culture and job satisfaction. We hypothesized – on the basis of traditional gender roles – that women, and especially mothers, would benefit most from a family supportive organizational culture. We utilized three divergent samples gathered from male (N=768) and female (N=1364) employees in Finland: (1) a female-dominated sample from social and health care; (2) a male-dominated sample from paper industry; and (3) more gender-mixed sample from the ICT company. Work-family culture was described through its positive (work-family support) and negative facets (work-family barriers), whereas job satisfaction was operationalized via a facet-based scale. Hierarchical moderated regression analyses performed separately for the three different organizations revealed that the results for mothers and fathers under the condition of high work-family support differed in the paper mill and the information and communication technology (ICT) company. Thus, in addition to gender, the type of organization also moderated the relationship. Specifically, in the paper mill, mothers benefited more from high work-family support than fathers, whereas in the ICT company the reverse situation held: fathers benefited more than mothers. Thus, high work-family support was associated with higher job satisfaction among mothers in the paper mill and among fathers in the ICT company.     

Life satisfaction,self‐esteem,and personal happiness among Mexican and African Americans

Since the publication of The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, the writings of Thomas S. Kuhn have had a great impact on the way sociologists perceive developments within their discipline. This essay offers a critical review of the Kuhnian framework and questions the unreflective endorsement of this perspective. After a brief summary of the main points in Kuhn's approach, this paper argues that Kuhnian approaches preclude the possibility of an investigation of the historical relations and developments that mediate the production of scientific knowledge. Kuhn retains a reified view of science free from both sociohistorical influence and critical scholarship. Ideas still beget ideas, and knowledge gained through scientific investigation is still cumulative.     

Factors affecting stakeholder’s levels of satisfaction with community partnership association in Rayong Province,Thailand

ABSTRACT

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) studies have investigated the differences among five parameters: gender, age, education, income, and occupation; however, the findings are generally dissimilar. For instance, no comprehensive concordance has been reached on the performance and importance of the differences among those five parameters regarding stakeholder expectations and perceptions of CSR activities. Some voluminous investigations have revealed that the literature does not discuss the essential importance of the differences among the five parameters, and as a consequence, the magnitude of such differences is unexplained. This research analyses the quantitative and qualitative significances of the differences among the five parameters in stakeholder satisfaction level and perceptions of CSR activities conducted by the Community Partnership Association in Rayong Province, Thailand. Overall satisfaction levels positively correlated with education and age, indicating that intellectual background and personal experiences considerably influence the perceptions of CSR activities. This study assists policymakers and industrial sectors to launch the most practical strategies for plotting, scheming, implementing, and evaluating sustainability initiatives.