Locke (1976) defined job satisfaction as a pleasurable or positive
emotional state resulting from the appraisal of one’s job or job experiences.
Judge and Hulin (1993) have identified three different approaches to job
satisfaction. The first views job satisfaction as resulting from stable
individual differences that could even have their roots in the individual’s
genetic inheritance (e.g., Griffin & Bateman, 1986). The second approach
sees job satisfaction as the result of social information processing—job
satisfaction is construed and developed out of experiences and information
provided by others at work (e.g., Salancik & Pfeffer, 1977). The third
approach is a job-as-information perspective. It argues that a person’s job
satisfaction is influenced directly by the characteristics of his or her job, and
the extent to which those characteristics match what that person wants in a
job (e.g., Hackman & Oldham, 1976).