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Concept
Job characteristic theory
Summary
Job characteristics theory is a theory of work design. It provides “a set of implementing principles for enriching jobs in organizational settings”. The original version of job characteristics theory proposed a model of five “core” job characteristics (i.e. skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy, and feedback) that affect five work-related outcomes (i.e. motivation, satisfaction, performance, and absenteeism and turnover) through three psychological states (i.e. experienced meaningfulness, experienced responsibility, and knowledge of results).
Work redesign first got its start in the 1960s. Up until then, the prevailing attitude was that jobs should be simplified in order to maximize production, however it was found that when subjected to highly routinized and repetitive tasks, the benefits of simplification sometimes disappeared due to worker dissatisfaction. It was proposed that jobs should be enriched in ways that boosted motivation, instead of just simplified to a string of repetitive tasks. It is from this viewpoint that Job Characteristics Theory emerged.
In 1975, Greg R. Oldham and J. Richard Hackman constructed the original version of the Job Characteristics Theory (JCT), which is based on earlier work by Turner and Lawrence and Hackman and Lawler. Turner and Lawrence, provided a foundation of objective characteristics of jobs in work design. Further, Hackman and Lawler indicated the direct effect of job characteristics on employee's work related attitudes and behaviors and, more importantly, the individual differences in need for development, which is called Growth Need Strength in Job Characteristics Theory.
In 1980, Hackman and Oldham presented the final form of the Job Characteristics Theory in their book Work Redesign. The main changes included the addition of two more moderators- Knowledge and Skill and Context Satisfaction, removal of the work outcomes of absenteeism and turnover, and increased focus on Internal Work Motivation. Several of the outcome variables were removed or renamed as well.
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