Table 3.
Ordinary least squares regression coefficients of overall job satisfaction on doctors' personal, practice and job characteristics — parsimonious model derived from backward stepwise estimation.
| Characteristic | n (%) or mean (SD) | Regression coefficient (95% CI) | P-value |
|---|---|---|---|
| GP characteristics | |||
| Male | 519 (64.3%) | −0.37 (−0.55 to −0.20) | <0.001 |
| Age 50–54 yearsa | 142 (17.6%) | 0.29 (0.06 to 0.52) | 0.014 |
| Age 55–59 yearsa | 86 (10.7%) | 0.52 (0.22 to 0.81) | 0.001 |
| Age ≥60 yearsa | 31 (3.8%) | 0.60 (0.16 to 1.04) | 0.008 |
| Two children <18 yearsb | 264 (32.7%) | 0.31 (0.10 to 0.52) | 0.003 |
| Three or more children <18 years b | 176 (21.2%) | 0.33 (0.09 to 0.57) | 0.006 |
| Fairly good general healthc | 193 (23.9%) | −0.44 (−0.64 to −0.25) | <0.001 |
| Not good general healthc | 31 (3.8%) | −1.08 (−1.51 to −0.66) | <0.001 |
| Practice characteristics | |||
| Location rurald | 54 (6.7%) | 0.51 (0.19 to 0.84) | 0.002 |
| Location semi-rurald | 221 (27.4%) | 0.27 (0.09 to 0.46) | 0.004 |
| Location inner cityd | 89 (11.0%) | 0.50 (0.24 to 0.76) | <0.001 |
| PMS practice | 356 (44.1%) | 0.27 (0.10 to 0.43) | 0.001 |
| Job characteristics | |||
| Individual practice income £50–70Ke | 222 (27.5%) | 0.20 (0.02 to 0.39) | 0.034 |
| Individual practice income £85–100Ke | 134 (16.6%) | 0.23 (0.00 to 0.46) | 0.048 |
| Number hours on call per week | 12.1 (12.0) | −0.01 (−0.02 to −0.00) | 0.006 |
| Involved in decisions on changes that affect workf | 356 (44.1%) | 0.36 (0.19 to 0.53) | <0.001 |
| Job has become more interesting over last yearf | 149 (18.5%) | 0.54 (0.33 to 0.76) | <0.001 |
| Cannot meet conflicting demands on time at workf | 584 (72.4%) | −0.29 (−0.48 to −0.09) | 0.004 |
| Mean job stress | 3.37 (0.65) | −0.62 (−0.76 to −0.47) | <0.001 |
| Constant | 6.50 (5.96 to 7.04) | <0.001 | |
n = 807; R2=0.37; adjusted R2=0.35.
Compared with aged 45–49 years.
Compared with no children under 18 years;
Compared with good general health.
Compared with town/city location.
Compared with individual income from practice <£50K.
Compared with no agreement with workday experience statements (such as strongly disagree, disagree or neither). Variables removed from the model (P>0.05) were: age <35, 35–39, 40–44 years; non-white; cohabiting; one child under 18 years; suburban practice location; patient type (all categories); practice list size; salaried contract; individual practice income £70–85K, >£100K; hours worked per week (all categories); commute time; 3 workday items (changes to job in last year led to better patient care, trouble working out if doing well or poorly, do not have time to carry out all work).