This study included 140 junior medical doctors from public and private hospitals to find what determines their job satisfaction. Interaction of psychological distress, personality Types A/B and characteristics of private versus public hospital settings was the main hypothesis. These variables were measured through self report questionnaires. Though Type- B doctors scored higher on job satisfaction in both public and private hospitals, while Type A doctors reported progressively more job satisfaction over time. Three way factor ANOVA indicated distress as a salient factor in the public hospital settings followed by personalitytype in determining job satisfaction. In the private hospital settings, however, experience emerged as a stronger determiner of job satisfaction followed by personality-type and a significant interaction between distress, personality-type and experience. In the light of this evidence, the hypothesis that kinds of experience (public / private hospital settings) and kinds of personality (A/B Type behaviour) would affect each other in determining job satisfaction of junior doctors in the private hospital settings was supported. However it was Type-A behaviour and not the hypothesized Type-B that suited the self managed private hospitals. The nature of interaction estimated on the basis of marginal means of job satisfaction score across personality types and length of experience or service improved over time in private hospitals due to relatively better working conditions and more opportunities to use abilities and skills. There are several implications of the results towards improving the level of job satisfaction of the health careers in the public settings.
Global Journal of Business Management Vol. 1 No. 1, June 2007