Recession and job satisfaction of Indian information technology professionals

The purpose of this paper is to replicate the dispositional source of job satisfaction (JS) in a different cultural setting on the backdrop of the recession of 2008‐2009 and to investigate the specific subjective job‐related aspects that influenced Indian IT professionals' overall evaluation of JS.

Data were collected from 221 IT employees. Pearson's correlation, partial correlation and stepwise regression analyses were used to test hypotheses.

Apart from confirming the dispositional source of JS, satisfaction with nature of work, as well as relations with one's supervisor, emerged as the most important situational contributors over and above that of personality factors during recession in the Indian IT sector.

As the personality factors of Neuroticism, Extraversion and Agreeableness showed a key role in JS of Indian software employees in adverse conditions, selection and recruitment of IT personnel should lay emphasis on these factors. Also, paying attention to making the nature of work more satisfying, as well as promoting positive relationships between team members and leaders could serve as a buffer during economic downturns in maintaining the JS of Indian IT employees.

Although previous studies have looked at how personality plays an essential role in JS, they have hardly looked at the person‐situation interaction with respect to type of industry and status of economy. The paper reveals that specific personality and job factors can matter more in a certain type of industry, particularly during a rough economic patch.