Job Satisfaction and Affective Events Theory: What Have We Learned in the Last 15 Years?

Job satisfaction is a topic that garners quite a lot of attention in the literature as researchers and practitioners alike seek to understand, predict and improve employees’ contentment with their jobs. Similarly, in the decade and a half since its introduction, affective events theory (AET, Weiss & Cropanzano, 1996) is also gaining attention as it is recognized as a theoretically rigorous framework (Humphrey, 2006) and the prominent theory relating to workplace affect (Ashton-James & Ashkanasy, 2005). AET supplies a framework for investigating the relationship between work events, emotions and the resulting attitudes and behaviors – a structure which several investigations have empirically tested. The current paper reviews research conducted on job satisfaction within the AET framework and identifies areas in need of additional investigation.