Ego-defensiveness as a determinant of reported differences in sources of job satisfaction and job dissatisfaction

Abstract

Administered the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability scale to 77 white- and blue-collar male employees who described the determinants of their present satisfactions and dissatisfactions during 3 work periods. It was found, especially in relation to the reported determinants of job dissatisfaction, that the higher the social-desirability score the greater was the tendency to respond in a manner predictable from F. Herzberg's 1959 2-factor theory. Results support V. Vroom's 1964 suggestion that Herzberg's results are in part a product of ego-defensive processes within individuals. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved)