The Relationship of Self Efficacy and Job Culture to Job Satisfaction Among Certified Athletic Trainers

Abstract

Few studies have examined job satisfaction levels of athletic trainers and no known research exists examining the influences of athletic trainer’s self efficacy and job culture on levels of job satisfaction. The purpose of this study was to identify job satisfaction levels of certified athletic trainers based on their levels of self efficacy and their perceptions of their job cultures.

Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory served as the theoretical framework and Bandura’s Triadic Reciprocal Causation Model guided the study. Self efficacy, perceptions of job culture, and job satisfaction were measured by the Self Efficacy Scale, Perceptions of Job Culture Scale, and the Job Satisfaction Scale for Certified Athletic Trainers, respectively.

A correlational design using a survey approach was used to answer the research questions. The sample comprised 374 employed certified athletic trainers who were members of the National Athletic Trainers’ Association. Participants were employed in a variety of athletic training job settings including university/college, high school, clinic, clinic outreach/high school, professional team, or industry.

Internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha) for the scores of self efficacy (.91), job culture (.91), and job satisfaction (.76) were calculated. Relationships among self efficacy, job culture and job satisfaction of certified athletic trainers were examined using a series of three Pearson correlations. Simultaneous multiple regression analysis indicated that there was a significant relationship between job culture and job satisfaction, however, the significance was not practical. No significant relationship was found between self efficacy and job satisfaction, and it could not be determined that self efficacy and job culture collectively predict job satisfaction.

This study contributes to the literature on job satisfaction among certified athletic trainers. It offers administrators, educators, and human resources personnel psychometrically sound instruments to evaluate self efficacy levels, perceptions of job culture, and levels of job satisfaction among their employed certified athletic trainers.