Abstract

Prior research has identified three primary findings related to job satisfaction and age. The first is that satisfaction reflects a U-shaped cycle in which employees are satisfied with their work early in their careers followed by a dip in satisfaction and then an increase, which continues until retirement. A second finding is that satisfaction decreases with age due to burn-out, disillusionment, or pressure to retire. The third is that there is no relationship between age and satisfaction or indication that satisfaction remains constant with age. These studies reflect various contexts and time periods. The current study provides a comparative analysis of the impact of age and job satisfaction globally based on non-panel longitudinal data from the most recent wave of the International Social Survey Program (Work Orientations IV 2015). The study updates and extends previous research by exploring the impact of changing employment and economic conditions in cross-national contexts.