Employee Psychosomatic Distress in the Tourism Sector: Development of the Scale of Satisfaction with Working in Hospitality
Abstract
Foteini Tatsi, Eirini Triarchi, Fotios Tatsis, Elena Dragioti, Mary Gouva and Kostas Karamanis
Purpose: This research introduces and preliminarily validates the Scale of Satisfaction with Working in Hospitality (SWH) to assess quality of working life and psychosomatic distress among hospitality employees, addressing a gap in employee well-being understanding.
Method: Conducted at the University of Ioannina’s Department of Accounting and Finance from April to June 2022, the study began with a 10-item SWH scale, refined to 6 items through exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses with 1,007 Greek hospitality workers. Online platforms ensured participant confidentiality and anonymity, and tools like the SF-36 Health Survey and SCL-90-R were used for enhanced validity. Data analysis utilized SPSS 22 and Jamovi 2.4.1.
Results: The 6-item SWH scale showed strong reliability and validity, capturing quality of working life and psychosomatic distress. Significant findings included gender differences in psychosomatic distress and positive correlations between SWH and other measures, illustrating the link between job satisfaction and aspects like health, mental well-being, and burnout vulnerability.
Conclusions: This study offers a significant contribution to hospitality management, providing a validated tool for assessing employee satisfaction and psychosomatic issues. It underscores the importance of employee well-being in the hospitality sector for both workforce health and customer service quality. The SWH scale emerges as a valuable instrument for future research and practical application in organizational settings, potentially enhancing job satisfaction and mental health among hospitality employees.