Measuring Job Satisfaction in Portuguese Health Professionals: Correlates and validation of the job descriptive index and the job in general scale

This paper presents the psychometric properties of the job descriptive index (JDI) and job in general (JIG) instruments in a Portuguese sample of health professionals from hospitals and health centers. Demographic and professional correlates of job satisfaction are also investigated. The sample consists of 1,314 health professionals including physicians, nurses, administrators, and diagnostic technicians. The results show high internal consistency coefficients for the scores on the JDI subscales and the JIG scale, ranging from .75 to .90. The data supported the 5‐factor structure of the JDI scales. The factor analyses and the correlation coefficients did not support the distinction between an overall job satisfaction measure and the evaluation of the satisfaction with the present work. The results offer empirical support for the Portuguese adaptation of the JDI and JIG scales. Level of education emerged as the most important demographic correlate of job satisfaction facets and global satisfaction, and supervisory role as the most significant professional correlate.