Influence, demands, bullying and job satisfaction: a large-scale New Zealand study

Authors

Keywords:

Bullying, Quantitative demands, Influence, Job satisfaction, psychosocial

Abstract

This paper explores a number of factors influencing job satisfaction in the workplace. While our study aligns with existing literature on workplace influence and job demands, it specifically examines how exposure to workplace bullying affected employees' perceived job satisfaction. Using data from a large-scale national study covering 3,612 workers in New Zealand, we analysed data from across all industries to investigate the impact of influence at work, quantitative demands and exposure to bullying on job satisfaction. Data was collected using the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire III. We conducted a series of regression models to test the relationship among study variables.

The results showed that job satisfaction is influenced by all these factors. We found that those who experienced bullying had higher levels of quantitative demands and lower job satisfaction. In addition, the findings from regression analysis show that influence at work buffers the negative impact of high quantitative demands on job satisfaction.

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Author Biographies

Fatima Junaid, Massey University

Dr. Fatima Junaid is a Senior Lecturer at Massey University’s School of Management. With a robust academic background, including an MBA, MSc, and PhD, Dr. Junaid specializes in Organizational Behaviour and Human Resources, she works actively with the migrant and refugee communities. Her research focuses on critical areas such as wellbeing and stress, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), mental health, and psychosocial risks at work. She speaks at different fora and her publications are featured in the newspapers, industry and research journals and books. 

Dr. Junaid did the writing of the article. She is the country rep for Psychosocial risks COPSOQ for NZ.

Akib Mohammad Khandoker, WorkSafe

Dr Khandoker Akib Mohammad (Senior Advisor Reporting at Monitoring and Evaluation, Insights and Engagement, WorkSafe New Zealand)

Akib has a PhD in Statistics. He is proficient across a wide range of statistical programmes and data analysis techniques. He has had the privilege of working on diverse and impactful research initiatives in WorkSafe aimed at improving workplace safety and well-being in NZ, including the New Zealand Psychosocial Survey 2021, the New Zealand Carcinogens Survey 2021, and the Workforce Segmentation and Insights Program (WSIP) surveys. In these projects, his primary responsibilities included data analysis, report writing, and contributing to the overall research process. Akib is experienced working with IDI big datasets and has proficiency in statistical softwares, including R, SPSS, STATA, and Power BI.

Trang QT Khieu, WorkSafe

Dr Trang TQ Khieu is the Principal Advisor for Research at WorkSafe and an experienced researcher in public health and occupational health. She is a medical doctor and holds a PhD in Public Health from the University of Otago, in addition to a Master of Public Health from the University of Queensland, Australia, and a Master of Public Policy from the University of Auckland. Her research interests include epidemiology within public and occupational health, with recent work focusing on psychosocial health and occupational carcinogens.

Dr Khieu has led and co-led several major research initiatives at WorkSafe, including the NZ Carcinogen Survey, the NZ Psychosocial Survey, psychosocial surveys of healthcare workers, retail employees, and first responders, as well as comprehensive studies on occupational dust exposure. Together with Dr Khandoker Akib Mohammad, she led the design and execution of the current study, including data access, data management, and statistical analyses. She also drafted the methodology and contributed substantively to the results, introduction and discussion sections.

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Published

2025-11-20

How to Cite

Junaid, F., Khandoker, A. M., & Khieu, T. Q. (2025). Influence, demands, bullying and job satisfaction: a large-scale New Zealand study. New Zealand Journal of Health and Safety Practice, 2(3). Retrieved from https://ojs.victoria.ac.nz/nzjhsp/article/view/9654

Issue

Vol. 2 No. 3 (2025): Human Factors and Ergonomics Conference

Section

Research Papers