The purpose of this study was to investigate the factors associated with overall job satisfaction among faculty members of the University of Nairobi in Kenya. The study attempted to: (a) determine the level of overall job satisfaction; (b) determine the level of satisfaction with job-related factors; (c) determine relationships between overall job satisfaction and personal factors; (d) determine relationships between overall job satisfaction and job-related factors; (e) determine relationships between personal factors and job-related factors; and (f) identify predictors of overall job satisfaction.
The overall design was descriptive. The study population consisted of all the faculty members of the University of Nairobi.
The major findings were: (a) Only a slight majority of the faculty members at the University of Nairobi are satisfied with their job. (b) Faculty members were most satisfied with work itself, workload and co-workers. They were least satisfied with administration, participation in decision-making, promotion, pay and benefits, and facilities. (c) There was no significant relationship between overall job satisfaction and personal factors of age, gender, academic rank, terms of service, marital status, highest education level, teaching area, employment status, ethnic affiliation, and teaching experience. Significant relationship was found between overall job satisfaction and the place of earning the highest degree. (d) All the eight job-related factors had significant relationship with overall job satisfaction. Work itself had the highest correlation coefficient while facilities had the least. (e) There was significant relationship between personal factors of gender, academic rank, terms of service, marital status, teaching area, employment status, place of earning the highest degree, ethnic affiliation, teaching experience, and all the eight job-related factors. No significant relationship was found between personal factors of age and the highest education level, and the eight job-related factors. (f) Faculty members from Kalenjin (the president of Kenya's ethnic group) were more satisfied with promotion, pay and benefits, and professional growth, than faculty members from other ethnic groups. (g) All the independent variables explained 39.1 percent of the variance in the overall job satisfaction. Work itself, support and recognition accounted for most of the variation.
