Being in charge has its perks: More money, more control, more power. And apparently, more job satisfaction. On Thursday, the Pew Research Centerreleased data from a recent survey that found bosses are happier than workers in their jobs. Sixty-nine percent of the people in management positions from the survey said they were satisfied with their current positions, compared with just 48 percent of rank-and-file workers. The manager respondents were also more likely than non-managers to say they consider their work a career rather than merely a job (78 percent vs. 44 percent) and were much less likely to be looking for a job than those who don’t manage others (12 percent vs. 23 percent). They’re also more likely to be happy with their lives outside of work, to feel they’re paid fairly for what they do, and to think having children hasn’t been a hindrance to their advancement. While those numbers may not be surprising given the age, greater income and longer careers of those typically in management, the report did find that both managers and non-managers value the exact same things (and in the exact same order) when considering a job. Enjoyable work comes first, followed by job security and then the ability to take time off to care for family. Similarly low numbers of participants cited a big salary (just 20 percent of bosses and 18 percent of workers) and opportunities for advancement (25 percent vs. 24 percent) as being important, despite presumably different access to each. Also surprising, says Rich Morin, senior editor of Pew’s Social & Demographic Trends project, was how similar numbers of bosses and employees considered problems such as gender discrimination to be an issue. Sixty-two percent of managers and 66 percent of workers agree the country needs to make changes to solve gender inequality issues in the workplace. ”It wasn’t a case of big bad bosses and exploited workers,” Morin says. “That was an optimistic finding. On these important issues, they think alike.” Perhaps most notable, meanwhile, is that despite the greater satisfaction and lower stress associated with being in charge, fewer people want to become managers than not. Just 39 percent of people responding to Pew’s study said they would like such a position; 43 percent said they wouldn’t. (The remaining 18 percent included those who were already managers and a few who didn’t answer.) “Some men and women simply don’t want the headaches that come with being a boss, and some simply don’t want the long hours,” Morin says. For many, it seems, the satisfaction that comes from greater control and more money simply doesn’t outweigh the potential perils of being the one in charge. |
处于领导阶层有其特别的好处:更高的薪水,更大的控制力,更多权利,更明显的是更高的工作满意度。 皮尤研究中心日前公布了一项新调查的数据,该研究发现领导者更喜欢自己的工作。调查中69%处于管理阶层的人们表示他们对自己目前的工作很满意,而与此相比,仅48%的普通员工有同感。受调查的管理人员们与非管理人员相比也更可能说他们把自己的工作看作是一项事业而不仅仅只是一份工作(78%-44%),并且与非管理人员相比,他们去找工作的可能性也低得多(12%-23%)。 他们也更有可能对自己工作之余的生活感到满意,他们会感到自己得到公平的报酬,并且认为有孩子并不会成为他们升职的阻碍。 考虑到管理层人员的年龄、更高收入和更长在职时间等因素,这些数据或许不会太令人吃惊,但研究确实发现当谈及工作时管理者和非管理者都看重同样的东西(而且优先等级顺序也完全一样)。首先是工作内容自己要喜欢,其次是工作的稳定性,然后是能否有时间陪家人。管理层和非管理层一样都很少有人会把高薪(仅有20%的领导者和18的员工)和晋升机会(25%的领导和24%的员工)放在首位,尽管二者获取高薪和晋升机会的途径不同。 皮尤社会与人口趋势项目资深编辑里奇·莫林说,同样奇怪的是,员工和上司看待诸如性别歧视问题上人数是何其的相近。62%的管理者及66%的员工一致认为应该做些改变以解决在工作场所的性别不平等待遇问题。“这不像坏老板剥削员工的案例那样那么简单,”莫林说,“这是一个令人乐观的发现,在这些重要的问题上,他们想法一致。” 与此同时,或许是最值得一提的是,尽管更大的满意度、更小的压力和掌权相联系,想成为管理者的人却不多。接受皮尤调查的人中只有39%表示他们想做管理者,43%的人说不想做。(剩下的18%包括那些已经是管理者或者一些没有回答的人。) “一些男人和女人完全不想招惹成为管理者的种种头痛烦恼,一些人根本不希望长时间工作。”莫林说。对于许多人来说,更大的控制力和更多钱所带来的满足感在面对成为掌权人的潜在风险时似乎都失去了吸引力。 (译者 刘阳娟 编辑 丹妮) |