Job Satisfaction Among Workers with Intellectual Disabilities

Abstract

Job satisfaction is the most widely studied construct in industrial-organizational psychology, but relatively few studies have examined job satisfaction among employees with intellectual disabilities, and even these few used such a diversity of methodologies that meaningful comparison is nearly impossible. This study administers the abridged Job in General Scale (aJIGS)—considered the “best practice” instrument for assessing global job satisfaction in this population—to the Transition Options in Postsecondary Settings (TOPS) program at The Ohio State University (OSU), a federally-funded workforce development program that connects OSU students with intellectual disabilities to internships and integrated employment based on their unique skills and career interests. Both item-level means and mean overall scores were compared to a large preexisting random sample of nondisabled American workers. It was found that TOPS participants have significantly higher overall job satisfaction than the general population (in America), as well as significantly higher scores for the modified aJIGS items, “Is your job excellent?” and “Is your job enjoyable?”. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.No embargoAcademic Major: Human Resource