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Procedia Economics and Finance 23 (2015) 1457 – 1460

2nd GLOBAL CONFERENCE on BUSINESS, ECONOMICS, MANAGEMENT and

TOURISM, 30-31 October 2014, Prague, Czech Republic

The Job Satisfaction of Bank Employees in North Cyprus

Tulen Sanera*, Serife Zihni Eyupoglub
a
School of Tourism and Hotel Management, Near East University, Lefkosa, 98010 North Cyprus via Mersin 10 Turkey
b
Business Administration Department, Near East University, Lefkosa, 98010, North Cyprus via Mersin 10 Turkey

Abstract

The main purpose of this study was to provide empirical evidence to establish whether job satisfaction exists among bank
employees in North Cyprus. The study instrument used was the short form Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire (MSQ) which
measures job satisfaction using 20 facets of the job. The questionnaire was distributed to 723 bank employees, with 702 of them
being returned. Of these 702 returned questionnaires’ 679 were valid. Data analysis consisted of the computation of descriptive
statistics in order to examine the job satisfaction levels of the respondents. The study results indicated that bank employees were
moderately satisfied with their job.
© 2015
© 2014 The
TheAuthors.
Authors.Published
PublishedbybyElsevier
ElsevierB.V.
B.V.This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
Selection and/ peer-review under responsibility of Academic World Research and Education Center.
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Selection and/ peer-review under responsibility of Academic World Research and Education Center
Keywords: Job satisfaction, MSQ, bank employees, North Cyprus

1. Introduction

Job satisfaction has been defined in a variety of ways, with the most widely used definitions in the literature being
those of Locke (1976), Dawis & Lofquist (1984), and Porter, Lawler, and Hackman (1975). Locke (1976) defined
job satisfaction as a pleasurable or positive emotional state resulting from the appraisal of one’s job experiences.
Dawis & Lofquist (1984) defined job satisfaction as the result of the worker’s appraisal of the degree to which the
work environment fulfills the individual’s needs, and Porter, Lawler, & Hackman (1975) defined job satisfaction as
one’s reaction against his/her occupation or organization. In general, it can be said that job satisfaction is an
affective reaction to a job that results from the person’s comparison of actual outcomes with those that are desired,
anticipated, or deserved (Oshagbemi, 2000).

* Tulen Saner. Tel.:+9-0392-223-6464; fax: +9-0392-223-6461.

E-mail address: tulen.saner@neu.edu.tr

2212-5671 © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Selection and/ peer-review under responsibility of Academic World Research and Education Center
doi:10.1016/S2212-5671(15)00594-8
1458 Tulen Saner and Serife Zihni Eyupoglu / Procedia Economics and Finance 23 (2015) 1457 – 1460

The search for an understanding of the causes of job satisfaction and/or dissatisfaction is an ongoing area of
interest for social scientists and managers; the premise being that satisfied workers will be more productive and
remain with the organization longer, whereas dissatisfied workers will be less productive and more inclined to quit
(Sarker, Crossman, & Chinmeteepituck, 2003). The first study of job satisfaction dates back as far as 1935 with
Hoppack. More than 70 years of research is a clear indication of the necessity to have a clear understanding of
attitudes towards work and how these attitudes have a powerful effect on a variety of aspects related to
organizational behaviour.
Today's work environment is undergoing a major shift; factors such as globalisation, growing economies, and
improved technology are constantly presenting new challenges and creating new opportunities for people
(Shrivastava & Purang, 2009). Our job is not only a main source of income but also an important part of our life that
contributes to our social standing (Sharma & Jyoti, 2009). Dissatisfaction amongst human resources is undesirable
and dangerous in any profession. Satisfied and committed human resources are the most significant assets of any
organisation, including banks and as banking institutions are the backbone of a nation's economy, the efficient
management of human resources and the maintenance of higher job satisfaction levels affect the growth and
performance of an entire economy (Shrivastava & Purang, 2009). Banks as financial institutions have significant
contribution in the development process of the country (Rahman, Gupta, Moudad-Ul-Huq; 2012). So, for the success
of banking, it is very important to manage human resource effectively and to understand whether human resources
are satisfied or not. The North Cyprus banking sector is a fast-growing financial service sector and during the last
few decades it has been playing a dominant role in the financial service sector. Some problems that exist in current
banks today however include long working hours, work pressure, bad working environment, and less promotion
opportunities to name a few (Hossain, N.D). Employee job satisfaction affects the quality of bank service which in
turn affects the degree of customer satisfaction.
The main purpose of this study is to examine the job satisfaction in North Cyprus banking sector, and to identify
which aspects of the job are sources of satisfaction and which are source of dissatisfaction for banking employees.
The results of this study will enable banking authorities and policy makers to develop and implement human
resource management policies towards the improvement of the undesirable conditions and the strengthening of the
desirable conditions, reinforcing the financial service sector in North Cyprus. Studies that examine this relationship
in a Turkish cultural context are few thus providing an ideal opportunity for research aiming to fill the gap in this
field.

2. Methodology

To measure the job satisfaction of the bank employees the short-form Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire
(Weiss, Dawis, England, & Lofquist, 1967) was utilized. The Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire (MSQ) is one of
the most widely used instruments in the measurement of job satisfaction (Scarpello & Campbell, 1983). It has been
used to measure job satisfaction in a variety of sectors. The short-form MSQ is composed of twenty facets, each
facet represented with just one satisfaction item. The short-form MSQ measures three satisfaction scales, namely
intrinsic satisfaction, extrinsic satisfaction, and overall job satisfaction. Intrinsic satisfaction refers to occupational
conditions (how people feel about the nature of the job’s tasks), and extrinsic satisfaction refers to environmental
conditions (how people feel about features of the job that are external to the work). Respondent bank employees
were asked to express the extent of their satisfaction with each of the 20 facets of their job on a five-point Likert
scale ranging from 1 (very dissatisfied) to 5 (very satisfied). The original short-form MSQ was translated into
Turkish by the authors and tested on eight bank employees to test its validity and reliability. The internal
consistency of the translated questionnaire was 0.92, obtained using Cronbach’s alpha coefficient. The questionnaire
was accompanied with a personal information form in order to determine the demographic variables of the bank
employees that participated in the study.
The population for this study comprised of bank employees from public and private banks in North Cyprus. A
total of 723 questionnaires were distributed to bank employees with 702 being returned. Of this number 23 were not
useable thus leaving 679 valid questionnaires.
 Tulen Saner and Serife Zihni Eyupoglu / Procedia Economics and Finance 23 (2015) 1457 – 1460 1459

The statistical package for the social sciences (SSPS) version 17 was used to analyze the data collected. Analysis
consisted of the computation of descriptive statistics in order to examine the job satisfaction levels of the bank
employees.
Out of the respondent bank employees 65% were female and 35% were male, 61% were married and 39% were
not married. When it comes to age 1% were below the age of 21, 41% were between the ages 21 and 30, 42% were
between the ages 31 and 40, 14% between the ages 41 and 50 and the remaining 2% were above 50 years of age.

3. Findings and Discussion

The mean scores and standard deviations for the job satisfaction of the bank employees in North Cyprus can be
seen in Table 1. Mean scores below 3.50 are considered to be more on the “dissatisfied” side of the “satisfaction-
dissatisfaction” scale with mean scores above 3.50 being more on the “satisfied” side of the scale (Pearson & Seiler,
1983).

Table 1 Job Satisfaction Mean Scores

Overall Job Satisfaction Intrinsic Satisfaction Extrinsic Satisfaction

N Mean Score Standard N Mean Standard N Mean Score Standard
Deviation Score Deviation Deviation
679 3.65 0.67 679 3.72 0.67 679 3.55 0.79
As Table 1 presents the level of overall job satisfaction and intrinsic satisfaction and extrinsic satisfaction
experienced by bank employees are both above 3.50 thus indicating job satisfactions. This finding is supported by
Ahmed & Uddin (2012) who concluded that bank officers in Bangladesh were satisfied with their job. Further
support comes from Hassan et al, (2011) who also indicated that private bank employees in Pakistan were satisfied
with their jobs.
Of the 20 facets of the job measured through the MSQ (activity, independence, variety, social status,
supervision/human resource, supervision/technical, moral values, security, social service, authority, ability, policies
and practices, compensation, advancement, responsibility, creativity, working conditions, co-workers, recognition,
and achievement), 14 of the facets are sources of satisfaction. The facets independence, policies and practices,
compensation, advancement, and responsibility indicate clear sources of dissatisfaction for the bank employees as
seen in Table 2.

Table 2 Job Dissatisfaction Sources and their Mean Scores

Variable Aspect of the Job N Mean Score Standard Deviation

Variety Intrinsic 679 3.44 1.17
Responsibility Intrinsic 679 3.44 1.11
Independence Intrinsic 679 3.37 1.16
Policies and Practices Extrinsic 679 3.38 1.19
Advancement Extrinsic 679 3.22 1.22
Compensation Extrinsic 679 3.20 1.25

Note that three of the facets, namely policies and practices, compensation, and advancement are extrinsic aspects
of the job, and are greater sources of dissatisfaction when compared to the intrinsic aspects, namely independence
and responsibility. Ahmed & Uddin (2012) also indicated that bank officers in Bangladesh were dissatisfied with the
promotion/advancement, and salary and benefits/compensation aspects of their job supporting the findings of this
study.

4. Conclusion and Discussion

The main purpose of this study was to examine the job satisfaction of bank employees in North Cyprus. The
results show that bank employees are satisfied with their job overall as well as the intrinsic and extrinsic aspects of
1460 Tulen Saner and Serife Zihni Eyupoglu / Procedia Economics and Finance 23 (2015) 1457 – 1460

their job. The six main sources of dissatisfaction are responsibility, independence, policies and practices,
advancement, compensation and variety indicating to bank authorities that steps need to be taken to develop and
implement human resource management policies towards the improvement of the undesirable conditions and the
strengthening of the desirable conditions. For example, training and development programs can be developed to
improve the skills and knowledge of employees as well as enriching their job, contributing to the (variety) facet of
job and to help develop career paths for them thus contributing to the satisfaction of the “advancement” facet of their
job. Employee training programs have been found to be significant in improving and developing the level of
service rendering by an organization as the skills of employees are boosted and ultimately increased customer
satisfaction (Kennedy & White, 1997 cited from Khan et.al., 2011). Additionally, employees should be given more
autonomy so that they can participate in certain aspects of the decision-making process, thus contributing to the
satisfaction of the “responsibility” and “independence” facets of the job. Furthermore, with less of a formal
hierarchical relationship and more open channels of communication management can keep employees
knowledgeable about key issues in the bank, therefore the “policies and practices” facet of the job can be satisfied.
Also, open communication and exchange of information also allows for a trustful relationship between bank
authorities/management and employees. The employee rewarding system should be based on the kind of work done,
level of skill and knowledge, as well as responsibility assumed so that employees feel appreciated and motivated
towards their work, thus satisfying the “compensation” facet of their job. Performance based bonuses, as well as
human resource policies such as open communication, career development programs, and employee reward systems
have been found to contribute to the retention of human resources (Mohanty, 2009).
It is hoped that this study makes a contribution to the job satisfaction literature, especially in Turkish cultural
perspective.

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