Communication Satisfaction Surveys
Additional Resources
The Communication Satisfaction Questionnaire, developed by Downs and Hazen (1977), is a primary investigative tools used in communication assessments. Employees were asked about their satisfaction level with various aspects of communication within the organization. This is a summary of employee responses collected from the 26 companies represented in the databank. The results are presented in three sections.
"Communication satisfaction: A useful construct?" Paper presented at the ICA convention, 1986.
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Table 1 presents a rank-order of the communication satisfaction items in descending order of satisfaction. All means are computed on a “0 – 10” point satisfaction scale, with “0” representing no satisfaction, “5” representing average satisfaction, and “10” representing high satisfaction.
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Table 2 presents employees’ reactions to factors that impact their level of job performance. A “0 – 10” point scale was used, with “0” representing that the item had no influence on performance, “5” indicating average influence, and “10” indicating high influence.
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Table 3 presents the demographics of the sample.
Table 1: Rank of Employee Satisfaction Levels
Rank | Mean | Standard deviation | Survey item |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | 7.45 | 2.44 | Supervisor trusts me. |
2 | 7.14 | 2.34 | Supervision given me is about right. |
3 | 7.07 | 2.17 | Work group is compatible |
4* | 6.88 | 2.04 | My employees are responsive to downward directive communication. |
5* | 6.81 | 2.04 | Subordinates are receptive to evaluation, suggestions, and criticism. |
6 | 6.79 | 2.02 | Satisfaction with my job. |
7 | 6.69 | 2.29 | Supervisor is open to ideas. |
8* | 6.64 | 2.12 | Subordinates feel responsible for initiating upward communication. |
9* | 6.53 | 2.06 | Subordinates anticipate my needs for information. |
10 | 6.48 | 2.66 | Information about employee benefits and pay. |
11 | 6.39 | 2.52 | The extent of grapevine activity in our organization. |
12 | 6.38 | 2.29 | Horizontal communication with other employees is accurate and free flowing. |
Note: * Designates that only those in supervisory positions answered the questions.
N = 2,101
*N = 547
Table 2: Factors Influencing Level of Job Performance
Rank | Mean | Standard deviation | Survey item |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | 8.77 | 1.67 | Feelings of personal achievement |
2 | 8.72 | 1.72 | Job satisfaction |
3 | 8.68 | 2.14 | Job security |
4 | 7.73 | 2.09 | Pay |
5 | 7.7 | 2.81 | Family |
6 | 7.63 | 2.21 | Immediate supervisor |
7 | 7.56 | 2.59 | Opportunities for advancement |
8 | 7.18 | 2.13 | Co-workers |
9 | 5.91 | 2.71 | Economic conditions |
Table 3: Database Demographics
Demographics | Database |
|---|---|
Gender | (a) Males: 49.9%
(b) Females: 50.1% |
Age | (a) under 21: 3.2%
(b) 21-29: 38.9%
(c) 30-39: 31%
(d) 40-49: 15.7%
(e) 50-59: 8.9%
(f) over 60: 2.2% |
Education | (a) high school or less: 44.5%
(b) some college: 22.7%
(c) specialized professional degree: 10.7%
(d) undergraduate college degree: 20.7%
(e) graduate degree: 2.0% |
Length of time worked for the organization | (a) less than a year: 18.2%
(b) 1-4 years: 33.9%
(c) 5-8 years: 20.5%
(d) over 9 years: 26.8% |
Downs, C., & Hazen, M.D. 1977. A factor analytic study of communication satisfaction. Journal of Business Communication, 14(3):63-73.