The Design of Your Job

Think of a specific job (current or previous) you have held and name it. Please answer the following questions about those work activities. Respond to each item below, indicating whether it is Mostly False or Mostly True for your job activities.

1. I did a number of different tasks using a wide variety of skills.

2. I got to use a number of complex skills on this job.

3. I did a complete task from start to finish, the result of which was clearly visible.

4. I made a significant contribution to the final product (or service).

5. What I did affected the well-being of other people in very important ways.

6. My job made an important contribution to company success.

7. I had complete responsibility for deciding how and when my work was to be done.

8. My job gave me great freedom in doing the work.

9. The work itself provided me with opportunities to understand how well I was doing.

10. Supervisors or coworkers gave me much feedback on how well I was doing the job.

Scoring and Interpretation

Compute the number of Mostly True responses for the answers that represent each aspect of the Job Characteristics Model, as indicated below, and write your score where indicated:

Questions 1–2: Skill variety.

Score ____.

Questions 3–4: Task identity.

Score ____.

Questions 5–6: Task significance.

Score ____.

Questions 7–8: Autonomy.

Score ____.

Questions 9–12: Feedback.

Score ____.

These five scores represent how you see the Core Job Dimensions from the Job Characteristics Model, which indicate the quality and motivational impact of your job experience. A typical total score for overall motivation is 4-6, and a high total score would be 8-10, suggesting a highly motivating and satisfying job.. A low total score would be 0-2, suggesting a narrow, boring and repetitious job. In addition, your scores (0-2) for each of the five elements indicate what was present or missing from the motivational design of your job.

Which of the five elements contributed most to your job satisfaction? Which elements do you think are important enough to affect your choice of a new job?