Comparison of Happiness at Work Levels of Health, Education and Security Sector Employees: The Effect of Perceived Organizational Support

Abstract

This study aims to compare the happiness at work levels of employees in three different sectors: health, education and security, to determine the effect of perceived organizational support on happiness in all three sectors, and to investigate whether the happiness level of employees differs according to professional and demographic variables. The research was designed as a cross-sectional study. The Shortened Happiness at Work Scale and Perceived Organizational Support Scale were used as data collection tools. Ethical approval was obtained from the Batman University Ethics Committee (date: 04.01.2023; decision no: 2023/01-38). A total of 1114 employees participated in the study. In the study, the level of happiness at work was found to be significantly lower in the health sector than in the education and security sector. It was observed that perceived organizational support was a significant predictor of happiness in the workplace. In the study, it was also determined that employees with higher income, those working in the public sector and employees with less work experience had higher happiness levels. These results are important to understand the effects of sectoral differences and could contribute to the development of appropriate strategies in this context.