Pathways to Retention: Job Satisfaction, Burnout, & Organizational Commitment among Social Workers

ABSTRACT

Purpose: Job satisfaction, burnout, and organizational commitment remain concerns for human service organizations. Few studies have utilized a large sample of social workers to investigate these factors while also considering practice setting. In the present study, work-related burnout, satisfaction with workload, and satisfaction with organizational environment are examined as factors contributing to organizational commitment while comparing the measurement and predictive strength of these factors based on practice setting. Method: Confirmatory factor analyses and structural equation modeling were used to estimate and compare factors related to organizational commitment with a sample of 1,786 social workers practicing in the United States. Results: Satisfaction with organizational environment showed a strong positive relationship with organizational commitment. Work-related burnout was confirmed to have a negative relationship with organizational commitment. No measurement or structural model differences existed between social workers from different types of practice settings. Discussion: Findings suggest that increasing satisfaction with organizational environment is a better target for retaining employees than reducing workloads. Results emphasize the need for human service organizations to foster work environments which provide a climate of wellness, support, and recognition of employees’ contributions at work.

KEYWORDS:

• Organizational commitment
• professional burnout
• job satisfaction
• personnel turnover
• Copenhagen Burnout Inventory
• Social Worker Satisfaction Scale

Acknowledgments

The authors received no specific funding for this study. The authors would like to acknowledge Omotola Akinsola for assistance with data collection, Dr. William Robert Nugent for his guidance, and Dr. Tom Ladd for his instruction.

Data accessibility statement

The data underlying this article are not publicly available. Outcomes measured include sensitive information related to the personal lives and practice of social workers sampled. While steps were taken to maintain participants’ anonymity during data collection, there remains concern that certain data collected could lead to the identification of respondents, violating their confidentiality as participants in the study.

Disclosure statement

The authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose related to this manuscript.

Additional information

Funding

There was no funding associated with the collection of the data used in this study or in the preparation of this manuscript.