Personal Characteristics and Job Satisfaction Among Nurses in Lebanon

OBJECTIVE: This study investigates the level of satisfaction of Lebanese nurses in their job and the influence of their personal characteristics. BACKGROUND: Given the current difficulties experienced by Lebanese hospitals in recruiting and retaining a sufficient number of nurses, the need to understand the reasons of nurses' dissatisfaction became urgent. Moreover, satisfaction at work is essentially a personal experience also affected by cultural factors. Therefore, it was necessary to study the links between personal characteristics and nurses' dissatisfaction. METHODS: The study included 421 registered nurses. A modified version of Measure of Job Satisfaction, developed by Taynor and Wade, was used to assess the effect of the personal characteristics, namely educational level, age, years of work experience, position, and marital and parental status, on 5 dimensions of satisfaction: personal satisfaction, workload, professional support, pay and prospect, and training. RESULTS: The findings suggest that personal characteristics have important influences on nurses' job perceptions. University graduate nurses reported more dissatisfaction with the quality of supervision and with respect and treatment they receive from their superiors. Nurses younger than 30 years and the technically trained were more dissatisfied with the available opportunities to attend continuing education courses. Results of staff nurses and unmarried nurses showed trends of more dissatisfaction than the married and nurses of higher positions. Moreover, the whole sample perceived that nursing provided a high level of personal satisfaction, but nurses were most dissatisfied with salary and lack of prospects for promotion. CONCLUSION: The results indicate the importance of personal characteristics on nurses' retention. Furthermore, intrinsic factors related to the nature and experience of nursing are more job satisfying than extrinsic factors.