International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science

Submission Deadline-17th December 2024
Last Issue of 2024 : Publication Fee: 30$ USD Submit Now
Submission Deadline-05th December 2024
Special Issue on Economics, Management, Sociology, Communication, Psychology: Publication Fee: 30$ USD Submit Now
Submission Deadline-20th December 2024
Special Issue on Education, Public Health: Publication Fee: 30$ USD Submit Now

Investigating the Mediating Role of Social Capital in the Influence of Job Satisfaction on Subjective Well-Being among Librarians in Java Island, Indonesia

  • Muhammad Bahrudin
  • Robert Markus Zaka Lawang
  • 1288-1301
  • Jul 16, 2023
  • Social Science

Investigating the Mediating Role of Social Capital in the Influence of Job Satisfaction on Subjective Well-Being among Librarians in Java Island, Indonesia

Muhammad Bahrudin* and Robert Markus Zaka Lawang
Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, University of Indonesia
*Corresponding Author

DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.47772/IJRISS.2023.7711

Received: 25 May 2023; Accepted: 19 June 2023; Published: 16 July 2023

ABSTRACT

Subjective well-being (SWB) has become one of the indicators that can describe the level of prosperity or well-being of the population in real terms. In the professional context, high levels of SWB are associated with higher life satisfaction, better productivity, and better performance, especially in the helping profession. This study aims to analyze the level of SWB, job satisfaction, and social capital of librarians in Java Island, Indonesia, and analyze the mediating role of social capital in the influence of job satisfaction on the level of SWB of librarians. A quantitative approach was used with a sample of 345 librarians spread across six provinces in Java Island, Indonesia. Mediation analysis using the bootstrapping method in PROCESS v4.2 for SPSS application was used to identify direct, indirect, and total effects.  The results showed that the levels of SWB, job satisfaction, and social capital of librarians in Java Island were mostly in the “Moderate” category. It was also found that there is a partial mediating role of social capital in the influence of job satisfaction on the level of SWB of librarians with direct effect coefficient β=0.5936, indirect effect β=0.1975, and total effect β=0.7912 which are all significant. The partial mediation role shows that social capital only partially mediates the effect of job satisfaction on the level of SWB of librarians. Interventions can be made by optimizing aspects of social capital that still have minimal contribution such as network ownership or librarian membership in professional organizations. In addition, librarian professional organizations must proactively advocate for their members regarding the challenges they face, including increasing the benefits obtained when a librarian joins them.

Keywords: subjective well-being, social capital, job satisfaction, librarian, mediation analysis, indonesia

INTRODUCTION

A country’s development can be reflected through macroeconomic indicators such as gross domestic product and economic growth. However, these indicators do not fully reflect the level of prosperity, welfare, and income equality of the population [1], [2]. Therefore, social aspects and welfare measurement are becoming increasingly important in human resource development. One of the welfare indicators used is the happiness index or subjective well-being (SWB) [3], [4]. Since 2014, Indonesia has adopted the Survey of Happiness Measurement (SPTK) by the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS) to measure the welfare of the population and the progress of its national development. According to the 2021 Happiness Index Report, the happiness index of Indonesians rose to 71.49 from 70.69 in 2017 [5]. Despite being faced with the COVID-19 pandemic, this result increased compared to 2014, which amounted to 68.28.

Several studies have revealed the level of SWB in certain groups during the COVID-19 pandemic, such as in children in Germany and Brazil [6], and in self-employed groups in the UK [7]. Research was also conducted on special education teachers in China [8] and health professionals in Colombia [9]. Previous research shows that high levels of SWB are associated with higher life satisfaction, better productivity, and better performance in helping professions such as social workers [10]–[12], doctors [13], [14], teachers [8], [15], and nurses [16]–[18]. Therefore, it is important to understand SWB in the context of other professions, in this case, librarians. Librarians have an important role in providing inclusive library services to the community. They assist users in fulfilling their information needs [19] and provide services to vulnerable groups. This research will focus on the SWB of librarians in Indonesia to understand their life satisfaction and performance in providing library services to the community.

According to a Jobstreet Indonesia survey in 2021, 73% of workers in Indonesia are dissatisfied with their jobs. Some of the factors that cause dissatisfaction include an imbalance between work and personal life, lack of career path, work that does not match the educational background, and inadequate leadership style [20]. Previous research also shows that job satisfaction has a significant influence on SWB [12], [13], [16], [21]–[25].

Furthermore, this study will also examine the role of social capital as a mediator in the influence of job satisfaction on the level of SWB of librarians. Social capital theory explains that social capital is formed by social structures and provides convenience in interacting within that framework [26]. This research will specifically identify whether social capital formed in librarians’ networks with their professional organizations plays a role in mediating the effect of job satisfaction on the level of SWB.

Based on this background, this study aims to analyze the level of SWB, job satisfaction, and social capital of librarians in Java Island, Indonesia, and analyze the mediating role of social capital in the influence of job satisfaction on the level of SWB of librarians. Specifically, the hypotheses of this study are as follows.

  • H0 There is no mediating role of social capital in the effect of job satisfaction on the subjective well-being of librarians in Java Island.
  • Ha Social capital mediates the effect of job satisfaction on the subjective well-being of librarians in Java Island.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Subjective Well-Being

The term subjective well-being was introduced by Diener in 1984 as a way to understand how people evaluate their quality of life. Diener, also known as Dr. Happiness, is a researcher in the field of positive psychology who focuses on happiness. SWB includes individuals’ cognitive evaluations and emotional reactions to their lives. The main components of SWB are high levels of positive affect, low levels of negative affect, and life satisfaction. Diener identified various terms used in the literature on SWB, including happiness, hedonic levels, life satisfaction, and positive affect. Overall, SWB includes a subjective evaluation of one’s life, including cognitive and emotional evaluations [3].

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) defines SWB as “Good mental states, including all of the various evaluations, positive and negative, that people make of their lives, and the affective reactions of people to their experiences” [27]. In line with the definition which states that SWB refers to all types of a person’s evaluation of their life, both positive and negative, including affective reactions to their life events [28]. Diener enriches his definition of SWB as an assessment or evaluation of each individual about life. The assessment in question includes cognitive assessments such as life satisfaction and affective assessments or emotional responses to life that are sustained in aspects of positive and pleasant emotions, as well as in negative and unpleasant emotions [29].

Veenhoven states that SWB, which is synonymous with happiness, is related to the extent to which a person assesses the quality of his or her life positively as a whole [4]. In other words, SWB is about how well a person likes the life they live. Previously, Andrews & Withey explained that SWB involves an assessment of an individual’s quality of life, including cognitive evaluations and judgments about the level of positive and/or negative emotions [30]. Veenhoven follows this approach by stating that individuals use affective and thought components in evaluating their lives, where the affective component includes the level of pleasure experienced in feelings, emotions, and moods [4]. This is in line with Ryan & Deci’s view that SWB has roots in the idea of hedonism, which is pleasure-seeking behavior that is often associated with happiness [31].

Job Satisfaction

Job satisfaction is an inevitable concern, as well as a challenge for organizations in the modern era. Experts have various definitions because each has a different approach to formulating the definition of job satisfaction. In 1935, Hoppock defined job satisfaction as a combination of psychological, physiological, and environmental states that cause a person to honestly say ‘I am satisfied with my job’ [32]. Later in 1976, Locke defined job satisfaction as an individual’s appraisal of his or her job or work experience that results in a positive or pleasant emotional state [32]. That is, when an individual values certain aspects of a job (e.g. salary, coworkers), his/her satisfaction is positively affected when his/her expectations are met and negatively impacted when those expectations are not met compared to employees who do not value those aspects of their job.

Job satisfaction is also defined as a state resulting from an individual’s assessment that expresses satisfaction and positive feelings about his or her job [33]. Job satisfaction has become a focus for organizational researchers because of its varied influences in the workplace such as on performance, health, and turnover intention [34]. Gruneberg states that job satisfaction is positively correlated with productivity, the higher the job satisfaction, the higher the productivity [32].

Previous research shows that job satisfaction is one of the important predictors of SWB levels among professionals. Karabati et al. conducted a study to examine the mediating role of rumination in the relationship between job satisfaction and SWB of employees in the US and Turkey (n=383) [21]. Regarding job satisfaction, it was found that there was a significant positive correlation with the level of employee SWB with a coefficient of β = 0.40 (p < 0.01). The study of Lee et al. also found a weak correlation between job satisfaction and SWB (β=0.21 p<0.01) among athletic directors in US high schools [23].

Social Capital

Lyda Judson Hanifan, a school superintendent in Charleston, West Virginia, USA, first introduced the phrase social capital in her 1916 article The Rural School Community Center. According to Hanifan, social capital refers not to money or wealth but rather to goodwill, fellowship, sympathy, and social relationships among a group of individuals and families that form a social unit or group, both within the school environment and the surrounding community [35]. Seventy years later, Bourdieu mentioned that social capital refers to a collection of actual and potential resources associated with the ownership of a network of institutionalized relationships of mutual acquaintance and mutual recognition [36]. In other words, being a member of a group makes people or members of the group get support from collectively owned capital.

Meanwhile, Coleman argues that similar to other capitals, social capital is also productive, which allows the achievement of certain goals (material benefits and other successes) optimally which would not be possible without social capital or if the existence of social capital is not used [37]. Putnam defines social capital as “features of social organization, such as trust, norms, and networks, that can improve the efficiency of society by facilitating coordinated actions” [38], which he then develops his definition that “social capital refers to connections among individuals-social networks and the norms of reciprocity and trustworthiness that arise from them” [39]. In line with Putnam’s opinion, Fukuyama highlights the importance of trust in achieving economic prosperity. Fukuyama adopts the concept of trust to measure the level of social capital. Social capital will be strengthened if in a society there are norms of reciprocity in helping and cooperating through a network of social institutional relationships. Trust will emerge if a society has a set of moral values sufficient to foster honest behavior in its citizens [40].

Previous studies have shown that social capital correlates with the level of SWB. One of them is research conducted by Neira et al. which shows a positive and significant correlation between all dimensions of social capital measured on SWB [41]. Research by J. Zhang et al. also found a positive and significant correlation between social capital and the level of SWB of residents in the West China region [42]. Previous research on the mediating role of social capital in the context of SWB-related variables included Chan et al. who investigated the mediating role of individual-level social capital in the relationship between worries, mental health, and SWB among adults in Hong Kong during the COVID-19 pandemic (n=1,053) [43]. The results showed that the total effect of social capital on SWB was statistically significant (β=0.09 p=0.010). In addition, social capital mediated the relationship between COVID-19-related concerns, mental health, and SWB. Kühner et al.’s research also found that social capital, particularly on the dimensions of belongingness and peer relationships, also played a mediating role in the relationship between social economic status and SWB [44].

METHODS

Data and Sample

The population in this study are librarians working in 6 (six) provinces in Java, namely DKI Jakarta, West Java, Banten, Central Java, Special Region of Yogyakarta, and East Java, both in the government sector and the private sector. Based on data as of November 2022, there were a total of 2,307 librarians [45]. Cluster random sampling is used to determine the number of samples in each province so that the target sample data is obtained as in Table 1 below.

Table 1. Research population and sample

Province Population Sample
Jakarta 887 133
West Java 449 67
Central Java 381 57
East Java 291 44
Banten 83 12
Yogyakarta 216 32
Total 2.307 345

A survey method by distributing questionnaires was conducted for data collection. The questionnaire was created in an online form and distributed offline and online through librarian networks on available platforms such as Whatsapp Group, Telegram, Facebook, and e-mail.

Measurements

Various measurement tools are used and adopted to assess the level of SWB, job satisfaction, and social capital of librarians.

SWB is measured using three dimensions, which include cognitive, affective, and eudaimonia. The cognitive dimension assessment instrument uses the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) measuring instrument developed by Diener [46] which contains 5 life satisfaction assessment items. SWLS also has high internal consistency with a Cronbach’s alpha coefficient value between 0.79-0.89 [47]. The affective dimension was measured using the Positive and Negative Affective Schedule (PANAS) [48] which consists of 10 adjectives for positive affect or PA (e.g. interested, enthusiastic, inspired) and 10 adjectives for negative affect or NA (e.g. distress, upset, afraid). The PANAS scale has also been shown to have good internal consistency with Cronbach’s alpha coefficient values between 0.86-0.90 for PA, and 0.84-0.87 for NA [48]. The measurement of the eudaimonia dimension utilized the item construct developed in the SPTK [5] which adopted and modified the items of the SPWB [49]–[51]. All instruments used a Likert scale of 1-5.

Job satisfaction was measured using the 20-item version of the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire (MSQ) [52] instrument, the Short-Form MSQ on a 1-5 Likert scale with a score of 1 for “Very Dissatisfied” and a score of 5 for “Very Satisfied”. The Short-Form MSQ measures job satisfaction on intrinsic, extrinsic, and general dimensions. In addition, the Short-Form MSQ has high internal consistency with Cronbach’s alpha coefficients between 0.84-0.91 for the intrinsic job satisfaction scale, 0.77-0.82 for the extrinsic job satisfaction scale, and 0.87-0.92 for the general job satisfaction scale.

Social capital measurement adopted the Shortened Adapted Social Capital Assessment Tool (SASCAT) developed by Harpham [53] and has previously been validated on community health workers in Lao [54] and Indonesia [55]. SASCAT includes the measurement of social capital in structural (network, citizenship) and cognitive (trust, reciprocity, belonging in the community) dimensions. In this study, researchers adapted and developed SASCAT by adjusting the context to the research subject, librarians. Therefore, the SASCAT question items in this study included 18 question items consisting of 9 structural dimension items (network, citizenship/collective action) and 9 cognitive dimension items (trust, reciprocity, belonging in the community). The measurement uses a Likert scale of 1-5, with 1 “Strongly Disagree” and 5 “Strongly Agree”. The developed measurement tool proved to have good internal consistency with Cronbach’Alpha 0.942 on the structural dimension, and 0.953 on the cognitive dimension.

Analytic Strategy

In this study, descriptive analysis techniques were used to analyze respondent profiles based on gender, age, sector, library type, work location, tenure, marital status, and latest education.

Meanwhile, to test the hypothesis, mediation analysis was used. The mediation analysis was conducted using PROCESS v4.2 for SPSS, a computational tool developed by Andrew F. Hayes since 2012 that can be used to analyze data and test mediating variables through path analysis [56]. Furthermore, Hayes mentioned that mediation analysis in PROCESS uses bootstrapping techniques, by repeatedly resampling the data that has been obtained to produce many sample simulations. This method does not require the assumption of normal data distribution or other distributions because it has been resampled thousands of times from the available sample data. Hayes mentions there are 3 (three) assumptions of the type of mediation that can occur [56];

  • Total mediation (completely mediate) is a mediation role where the mediating variable explains the entire effect of the independent variable on the dependent variable. This can occur if the total effect (c) value is greater than the direct effect (c’) value, but the c’ value is not statistically significant, and the indirect effect (ab) value is not equal to 0 (zero).
  • Partial mediation (partially mediate) is the role of mediation where the mediating variable only explains part of the effect of the independent variable on the dependent variable. This can occur if the total effect (c) value is greater than the direct effect (c’) value, the c’ value is statistically significant, and the indirect effect (ab) value is not equal to 0 (zero).
  • No mediate, which means that the mediating variable does not affect the relationship between the independent variable and the dependent variable. This can occur if the total effect value (c) is equal to the direct effect value (c’) and the indirect effect value (ab) is equal to 0 (zero).

RESULTS

Profile of Respondent

Based on their profile, in general, the majority of respondents in this study are female librarians with an age range of 40-49 years old and married with children. The majority of respondents work in the public/government sector in higher education libraries in the DKI Jakarta Province. Meanwhile, based on work experience, most respondents are in the early phase of their career with 0-5 years of working experience and have a bachelor’s degree. A recapitulation of the respondent’s profile can be seen in Table 2 below.

Table 2. Profile of respondent

Amount Percentage
n 345 100%
Gender Male 221 64,1%
Female 124 35,9%
Age 20-29 years 67 19,4%
30-39 years 101 29,3%
40-49 years 105 30,4%
50-59 years 67 19,4%
≥ 60 years 5 1,4%
Sector Public 211 61,2%
Private 134 38,8%
Working location Jakarta 133 38,6%
West Java 67 19,4%
Central Java 57 16,5%
East Java 44 12,8%
Banten 12 3,5%
Yogyakarta 32 9,3%
Working experience 0-5 years 120 34,8%
6-10 years 73 21,2%
11-20 years 84 24,3%
> 20 years 68 19,7%
Marriage status Not married 76 22%
Married with children 231 67%
Married with no children 28 8,1%
Ever married 10 2,9%
Education level High School 4 1,2%
Diploma’s degree 28 8,1%
Bachelor’s degree 202 58,6%
Master’s degree 108 31,3%
PhD 3 0,9%

Source: Data processing from PROCESS v4.2 for SPSS (2023)

Levels of SWB, Job Satisfaction, and Social Capital

The SWB level of the majority of librarians in Java Island as shown in Table 3 is in the “Moderate” category, totaling 157 people. This number represents 45.5% of the total librarians involved as research samples. Then, the number of librarians in the “High” SWB category amounted to 51 people (14.8%), and “Very High” as many as 42 people (12.2%). A total of 65 librarians or 18.8% of the total sample were in the “Low” SWB category, and 30 librarians (8.7%) were in the “Very Low” category.

Table 3. Librarians’ SWB level in Java Island

Amount Percentage
SWB Very High 42 12,2%
High 51 14,8%
Moderate 157 45,5%
Low 65 18,8%
Very Low 30 8,7%
Total 345 100%

Source: Data processing from PROCESS v4.2 for SPSS (2023)

Based on the descriptive analysis in Table 4, the level of job satisfaction of librarians in Java Island is mostly in the “Moderate” category, with as many as 153 people or 44.3% of the research sample. In the “High” category, there are 66 librarians, or covering 19.1%, and in the “Very High” category as many as 27 librarians, or 7.8% of the research sample. The “Low” level of job satisfaction is owned by 67 librarians or equivalent to 19.4%. While 32 librarians or the equivalent of 9.3% of the research sample had a “Very Low” job satisfaction level.

Table 4. Librarians’ job satisfaction level in Java Island

Amount Percentage
Job satisfaction Very High 27 7,8%
High 66 19,1%
Moderate 153 44,3%
Low 67 19,4%
Very Low 32 9,3%
Total 345 100%

Source: Data processing from PROCESS v4.2 for SPSS (2023)

Table 5 shows that the social capital of librarians in Java Island is mostly at the “Moderate” level owned by 144 librarians or 41.7% of the research sample. The “High” level of social capital is owned by 70 librarians or 20.3% and 23 librarians (6.7%) have a “Very High” level of social capital. Then, librarians who have a “Low” level of social capital are 77 people (22.3%) and there are still 31 librarians (9%) with a “Very Low” level.

Table 5. Librarians’ social capital level in Java Island

Amount Percentage
Social capital Very High 23 6,7%
High 70 20,3%
Moderate 144 41,7%
Low 77 22,3%
Very Low 31 9%
Total 345 100%

Source: Data processing from PROCESS v4.2 for SPSS (2023)

Mediation Analysis

Based on the results of the mediation analysis using a multiple regression model based on path analysis in PROCESS v4.2 for SPSS, the influence of the research variables can be seen (see Table 6). Librarian job satisfaction has a significant influence on social capital (a=0.6894, p=0.000) which further forms “path a“. Based on the coefficient of determination (R2), job satisfaction contributes 28.81% to the variance in the social capital variable (R2 =0.2881, p<0.01) and the rest is influenced by other variables not examined in this study. The correlation between job satisfaction variables and social capital includes a fit model with a value of f=138.7998 (f>1).

Table 6. Mediation analysis results

Source: Data processing from PROCESS v4.2 for SPSS (2023)

Then job satisfaction also has a significant influence on the level of librarian SWB (c’=0.5936, p=0.000) which then forms “path c’“. This path c’ is the direct effect of job satisfaction on the SWB variable. While the social capital variable also shows a significant influence on SWB (b=0.2865, p=0.000) which then forms “path b“. Job satisfaction and social capital simultaneously contribute 52.11% to the variance in the SWB variable (R2=0.5211, p=0.000). The correlation between job satisfaction and social capital variables on SWB includes a fit model with a value of f=86.0539 (f>1).

Table 7. Total effect, direct effect, dan indirect effect

Effect β LLCI ULCI Desc.
Total effect X–>Y 0,7912 0,6989 0,8838 Significant
Direct effect X–>Y 0,5936 0,4909 0,6964 Significant
Indirect effect X–>Y
through M
0,1975 0,1324 0,2717 Significant

Source: Data processing from PROCESS v4.2 for SPSS (2023)

In Table 7, the mediation analysis output using PROCESS v4.2 for SPSS also shows that there is an indirect effect of job satisfaction on SWB through social capital with a coefficient value of β=0.1975 and LLCI=0.1324 and ULCI=0.2717. The indirect effect is significant because the LLCI and ULCI values do not include a value of 0 (zero) or all of them are above 0 (zero). The results of this analysis indicate that at a level of confidence of 95%, there is a significant mediating influence of social capital variables in the effect of job satisfaction on the level of SWB because it has a significant indirect effect and ≠ 0 (zero). Therefore, the alternative hypothesis (Ha) of this study, namely “Social capital mediates the effect of job satisfaction on the level of subjective well-being (SWB) of librarians in Java Island” is accepted, and H0 is rejected.

Furthermore, the determination of the type of mediation is done by looking at the total effect value (c) of job satisfaction on SWB through social capital which is the accumulation of direct effect and indirect effect which is c=0.7912 (p=0.000). The results of the mediation analysis that have been carried out show that the total effect value (c=0.7912) is greater than the direct effect value (c’=0.5936, LLCI=0.4909 ULCI=0.6964, p=0.000, significant), and the indirect effect value (ab=0.1975) is greater than 0 (zero). Based on the type of mediation role according to Hayes [56], this condition is partially mediated. This means that the mediating role of social capital only partially explains the effect of job satisfaction on the level of SWB of librarians in Java Island.

Fig. 1 The mediating role of social capital

Fig. 1 above shows path a (significant, ≠0), path b (significant, ≠0), path c’ or direct effect of X on Y (significant), total effect of X on Y through M (c), and indirect effect of X on Y through M (ab). The figure explains the partial mediating role of social capital in the effect of job satisfaction on the level of subjective well-being (SWB) of librarians.

DISCUSSION

Based on the results of hypothesis testing using mediation analysis using PROCESS v4.2 for SPSS, it was found that Ha of this study was accepted because of the direct effect with a coefficient of β=0.5936 (LLCI=0.4909 ULCI=0.6964, p=0.000) and a significant indirect effect with a regression coefficient of β=0.1975 ≠ 0 (LLCI=0.1324 ULCI=0.2717). Furthermore, based on the total effect value, it is known that the effect of job satisfaction on SWB is β=0.7912, where this value is the accumulation of direct effect and indirect effect so that the mediating role is proven. With the acceptance of the alternative hypothesis (Ha) of this study, it can be concluded that social capital mediates the effect of job satisfaction on the level of SWB of librarians in Java Island. The type of mediation proven is partial mediation, namely social capital mediates only part of the effect of job satisfaction on the level of SWB. This finding confirms previous research that social capital can provide a mediating role in relationships among variables related to subjective well-being, such as the mediating role of social capital in the relationship between COVID-19-related concerns, mental health, and SWB [43], as well as social capital mediating the relationship between socioeconomic status and the level of SWB [44].

In this study, the item with the highest contribution to the job satisfaction variable is related to librarians having high satisfaction with job security related to the opportunity to become permanent employees. On the social capital variable, the item that made the largest contribution was related to librarians actively using social media to communicate with their professional colleagues to strengthen social connections and obtain the latest information. While on the SWB variable, the largest contribution is the item that describes a sense of optimism about the future. Therefore, the mediating role of social capital in the influence of job satisfaction on the level of SWB can be explained that job satisfaction, especially related to the opportunity to become a permanent employee in their work environment, contributes to a sense of optimism in the future which is encouraged through increased networking activities through various social media channels.

The partial mediating role of social capital shows that social capital only partially mediates the effect of job satisfaction on the level of SWB of librarians. Therefore, interventions that can be made to improve librarians’ SWB through social capital include optimizing aspects that still have a minimal contribution. The lowest contribution value in the social capital variable is the item related to network ownership or librarian membership in professional organizations. The form of intervention that can be done in addition to encouraging librarians to join professional organizations is for the professional organization itself to increase promotion and show its function in improving the librarian profession in various aspects. In line with these conditions, items that include minimal contribution are related to the activeness of librarians involved in various events and provide support for professional organizations both in financial and non-financial forms. Before demanding this, librarian professional organizations must proactively advocate for their members regarding the problems they face, including increasing the benefits obtained when a librarian joins them. If these conditions can be improved, then the active contribution of librarians to their professional organizations should be accountable.

CONCLUSION

Based on the first objective proposed in this study, which is to analyze the level of subjective well-being (SWB), job satisfaction, and social capital of the librarian profession (n=345), the results show that the majority of librarians in Java Island are at a “Moderate” level of subjective well-being as much as 45.5%, a “Moderate” level of job satisfaction as much as 44.3%, and a “Moderate” level of social capital as much as 41.7%.

Then the second objective proposed by this study is to analyze the mediating role of social capital in the influence of job satisfaction on the level of subjective well-being of librarians in Java Island. Based on the results of the analysis, there is evidence of the mediating role of social capital in the effect of job satisfaction on SWB due to the direct effect with a coefficient of β=0.5936 (LLCI=0.4909 ULCI=0.6964, p=0.000) and a significant indirect effect with a regression coefficient of β=0.1975 (LLCI=0.1324 ULCI=0.2717). Furthermore, based on the total effect value, it is known that the effect of job satisfaction on SWB is β=0.7912, where this value is the accumulation of direct effect and indirect effect, so that the mediating role is proven (Ha is accepted). Based on the total effect value which is greater than the direct effect and significant, and the indirect effect value is greater than 0 (zero), the type of mediation role formed is partial mediation, which means that social capital mediates only part of the effect of job satisfaction on the level of librarian SWB.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Social capital is proven to have a mediating role that can improve librarians’ subjective well-being (SWB) related to job satisfaction. Hence, in order to optimize their social capital, we provide the following practical recommendations. First, librarians should join relevant professional organizations to expand their social network and self-development. They should also be actively involved in collective actions concerning professionalism and user interests. Secondly, librarian organizations should enhance their role as a forum for networking. They need to monitor and expand the field of action and provide opportunities for members to contribute and develop the profession. They can also optimize knowledge sharing and self-development programs. Third, library institutions need to support their librarians in networking with professional organizations through online and offline channels. Library management should facilitate self-development training and encourage innovation in problem-solving for librarians.

Furthermore, we also provide some academic recommendations for future studies as follows. First, this study contributes to adding literature that discusses subjective well-being in certain professions, that is, librarians. Thus, it is necessary to develop studies with similar topics to enrich the literature related to SWB. Second, this study enriches the literature regarding the mediating role of social capital in the influence of job satisfaction on subjective well-being. So, future studies with similar topics can be conducted on different target populations or other relevant professions due to the increasing importance of SWB among professionals who also contribute to the social welfare of society at large. In addition, expanding the research population and sample so that it is not limited to Java Island can also have important implications for the development of this subject.

Third, in future studies, it is necessary to accommodate discussions related to gender and age distribution to ensure the absence of gender bias and representation of each generation so that the analysis will be more comprehensive. Fourth, based on time, this study is a cross-sectional study because it only conducts one data collection. We recommend the necessity of conducting experimental or longitudinal studies to obtain a more comprehensive analysis and explanation of the correlation between research variables. Fifth, in future studies, data collection using self-report instruments should be divided over time to avoid common method bias so that respondents do not realize what is being measured.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

We would like to thank all the librarians for their support in this research project. Thanks to Prof. Dr. Robert M. Z. Lawang as the supervisor of this research project, as well as all Lecturers at the Master of Social Welfare Program, Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, University of Indonesia. Thanks to the SAINTEK Scholarship Program for its support of his Master’s Fellowship.

DECLARATIONS

Conflict of Interest. The authors have no relevant financial or non-financial interests to disclose.

Consent to Participate. Informed consent was obtained from all individual respondents included in the study.

REFERENCES

  1. E. Diener and M. E. P. Seligman, “Beyond Money: Toward an Economy of Well-Being,” Psychol Sci Public Interest, vol. 5, no. 1, pp. 1–31, Jul. 2004, doi: 10.1111/j.0963-7214.2004.00501001.x.
  2. W. Harumi and N. Bachtiar, “Potret Kebahagiaan Negara-Negara di Dunia: Suatu Tinjauan Literatur,” Bappenas Working Papers, vol. 5, no. 2, Art. no. 2, Jul. 2022, doi: 10.47266/bwp.v5i2.166.
  3. E. Diener, “Subjective well-being,” Psychological Bulletin, vol. 95, pp. 542–575, 1984, doi: 10.1037/0033-2909.95.3.542.
  4. R. Veenhoven, Conditions of Happiness. Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands, 1984. doi: 10.1007/978-94-009-6432-7.
  5. BPS, Indeks Kebahagiaan 2021. Jakarta: Badan Pusat Statistik, 2021.
  6. P. M. J. E. de Abreu, S. Neumann, C. Wealer, N. Abreu, E. C. Macedo, and C. Kirsch, “Subjective Well-Being of Adolescents in Luxembourg, Germany, and Brazil During the COVID-19 Pandemic,” Journal of Adolescent Health, vol. 69, no. 2, pp. 211–218, Aug. 2021, doi: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2021.04.028.
  7. W. Yue and M. Cowling, “The Covid-19 lockdown in the United Kingdom and subjective well-being: Have the self-employed suffered more due to hours and income reductions?,” International Small Business Journal, vol. 39, no. 2, pp. 93–108, Mar. 2021, doi: 10.1177/0266242620986763.
  8. W. Fu, L. Wang, X. He, H. Chen, and J. He, “Subjective Well-being of Special Education Teachers in China: The Relation of Social Support and Self-Efficacy,” Frontiers in Psychology, vol. 13, 2022, Accessed: Oct. 09, 2022. [Online]. Available: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.802811
  9. D. F. Barragán-Giraldo, G. Anzola-Pardo, and M. A. Guerrero-Lucero, “Subjective Well-Being in Healthcare Professionals in Colombia: On the Constitution of Subjectivity and the Ethics of Care in Times of the COVID-19 Pandemic,” Frontiers in Psychology, vol. 12, 2021, Accessed: Oct. 10, 2022. [Online]. Available: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.773173
  10. J. R. Graham, C. Bradshaw, S. Surood, and T. J. B. Kline, “Predicting Social Workers’ Subjective Well-Being,” Human Service Organizations Management, Leadership and Governance, vol. 38, no. 4, pp. 405–417, 2014, doi: 10.1080/23303131.2014.938584.
  11. M. Itzick and M. Kagan, “Understanding subjective well-being among social workers in Israel,” International Social Work, vol. 64, no. 3, pp. 399–411, 2021, doi: 10.1177/0020872818810771.
  12. O. O. Lewis, “An Exploration of Whether Job Satisfaction Predicts Subjective Well-Being among Social Workers,” Ed.D., Grand Canyon University, Ann Arbor, 2019. [Online]. Available: https://www.proquest.com/dissertations-theses/exploration-whether-job-satisfaction-predicts/docview/2320963105/se-2?accountid=17242
  13. P. Sharma and U. R. Srivastava, “Emotion Regulation and Job Satisfaction as Predictors of Subjective Well-being in Doctors,” Management and Labour Studies, vol. 45, no. 1, pp. 7–14, Feb. 2020, doi: 10.1177/0258042X19894084.
  14. L. Wang, H. Wang, S. Shao, G. Jia, and J. Xiang, “Job Burnout on Subjective Well-Being Among Chinese Female Doctors: The Moderating Role of Perceived Social Support,” Frontiers in Psychology, vol. 11, 2020, Accessed: Oct. 09, 2022. [Online]. Available: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00435
  15. D. W. Chan, “Subjective well-being of Hong Kong Chinese teachers: The contribution of gratitude, forgiveness, and the orientations to happiness,” Teaching and Teacher Education, vol. 32, pp. 22–30, May 2013, doi: 10.1016/j.tate.2012.12.005.
  16. E. Gurková, S. Haroková, J. Džuka, and K. Žiaková, “Job satisfaction and subjective well-being among Czech nurses,” International Journal of Nursing Practice, vol. 20, no. 2, pp. 194–203, 2014, doi: 10.1111/ijn.12133.
  17. H. Liu, X. Zhang, R. Chang, and W. Wang, “A research regarding the relationship among intensive care nurses’ self-esteem, job satisfaction and subjective well-being,” International Journal of Nursing Sciences, vol. 4, no. 3, pp. 291–295, Jul. 2017, doi: 10.1016/j.ijnss.2017.06.008.
  18. J. Oates, J. Jones, and N. Drey, “Subjective well-being of mental health nurses in the United Kingdom: Results of an online survey,” International Journal of Mental Health Nursing, vol. 26, no. 4, pp. 391–401, 2017, doi: 10.1111/inm.12263.
  19. R. E. Rubin and R. G. Rubin, Foundations of Library and Information Science, 5th ed. Chicago: ALA Neal-Schuman, 2020. Accessed: Feb. 09, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://www.alastore.ala.org/content/foundations-library-and-information-science-fifth-edition
  20. JobStreet Indonesia, “73% Karyawan Tidak Puas dengan Pekerjaan Mereka,” JobStreet Indonesia, Jun. 30, 2022. https://www.jobstreet.co.id/career-resources/plan-your-career/73-karyawan-tidak-puas-dengan-pekerjaan-mereka/ (accessed Nov. 22, 2022).
  21. S. Karabati, N. Ensari, and D. Fiorentino, “Job Satisfaction, Rumination, and Subjective Well-Being: A Moderated Mediational Model,” J Happiness Stud, vol. 20, no. 1, pp. 251–268, Jan. 2019, doi: 10.1007/s10902-017-9947-x.
  22. D. Jarosova et al., “Job Satisfaction and Subjective Well-Being Among Midwives: Analysis of a Multinational Cross-Sectional Survey,” Journal of Midwifery and Women’s Health, vol. 62, no. 2, pp. 180–189, 2017, doi: 10.1111/jmwh.12516.
  23. Y. H. Lee, K. A. R. Richards, and N. S. Washhburn, “Emotional Intelligence, Job Satisfaction, Emotional Exhaustion, and Subjective Well-Being in High School Athletic Directors,” Psychol Rep, vol. 123, no. 6, pp. 2418–2440, Dec. 2020, doi: 10.1177/0033294119860254.
  24. R. Anggraini, “Hubungan Kepuasan Kerja dengan Kebahagiaan di Tempat Kerja pada Karyawan PT POS Pekanbaru Indonesia,” Psychopolytan : Jurnal Psikologi, vol. 2, no. 1, Art. no. 1, Nov. 2018.
  25. M. Boruah and P. Buragohain, “Effect of job satisfaction and teacher’s morale on happiness of secondary school teachers of Dhemaji District, Assam,” International journal of health sciences, pp. 2825–2836, Apr. 2022, doi: 10.53730/ijhs.v6nS1.5280.
  26. J. S. Coleman, “Social Capital in the Creation of Human Capital,” American Journal of Sociology, vol. 94, pp. S95–S120, 1988.
  27. OECD, OECD Guidelines on Measuring Subjective Well-being. OECD, 2013. doi: 10.1787/9789264191655-en.
  28. E. Diener, “Guidelines for National Indicators of Subjective Well-Being and Ill-Being,” Applied Research Quality Life, vol. 1, no. 2, pp. 151–157, Aug. 2006, doi: 10.1007/s11482-006-9007-x.
  29. E. Diener, S. Oishi, and L. Tay, “Advances in subjective well-being research,” Nature Human Behaviour, vol. 2, no. 4, pp. 253–260, 2018, doi: 10.1038/s41562-018-0307-6.
  30. F. M. Andrews and S. B. Withey, Social Indicators of Well-Being: Americans’ Perceptions of Life Quality. New York: Springer, 1976. Accessed: Nov. 29, 2022. [Online]. Available: https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-1-4684-2253-5
  31. R. M. Ryan and E. L. Deci, “On Happiness and Human Potentials: A Review of Research on Hedonic and Eudaimonic Well-Being,” Annual Review of Psychology, vol. 52, no. 1, pp. 141–166, 2001, doi: 10.1146/annurev.psych.52.1.141.
  32. M. M. Gruneberg, Understanding Job Satisfaction. London: Palgrave Macmillan, 1979.
  33. T. A. Judge and J. D. Kammeyer-Mueller, “Job Attitudes,” Annual Review of Psychology, vol. 63, no. 1, pp. 341–367, 2012, doi: 10.1146/annurev-psych-120710-100511.
  34. D. J. Schleicher, S. D. Hansen, and K. E. Fox, “Job attitudes and work values,” in APA handbook of industrial and organizational psychology, Vol 3: Maintaining, expanding, and contracting the organization, in APA handbooks in psychology®. Washington, DC, US: American Psychological Association, 2011, pp. 137–189. doi: 10.1037/12171-004.
  35. L. J. Hanifan, “The Rural School Community Center,” The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, vol. 67, pp. 130–138, 1916.
  36. P. Bourdieu, “The Forms of Capital,” in Handbook of Theory and Research for the Sociology of Education, Westport: Greenwood, 1986, pp. 241–258.
  37. J. S. Coleman, Foundations of Social Theory. Cambridge: The Belknap Press, 1990.
  38. R. D. Putnam, Making democracy work: Civic traditions in modern Italy. New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1993.
  39. R. D. Putnam, Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2000.
  40. F. Fukuyama, Trust: The social virtues and the creation of prosperity. New York: The Free Press, 1995.
  41. I. Neira, M. Lacalle-Calderon, M. Portela, and M. Perez-Trujillo, “Social Capital Dimensions and Subjective Well-Being: A Quantile Approach,” J Happiness Stud, vol. 20, no. 8, pp. 2551–2579, Dec. 2019, doi: 10.1007/s10902-018-0028-6.
  42. J. Zhang, J. Xie, X. Zhang, and J. Yang, “Income, Social Capital, and Subjective Well-Being of Residents in Western China,” Sustainability, vol. 14, no. 15, Art. no. 15, Jan. 2022, doi: 10.3390/su14159141.
  43. S. M. Chan et al., “The mediating role of individual-level social capital among worries, mental health and subjective well-being among adults in Hong Kong during the COVID-19 pandemic,” Curr Psychol, Sep. 2021, doi: 10.1007/s12144-021-02316-z.
  44. S. Kühner, M. Lau, and E. A. Addae, “The Mediating Role of Social Capital in the Relationship Between Hong Kong Children’s Socioeconomic Status and Subjective Well-Being,” Child Ind Res, vol. 14, no. 5, pp. 1881–1909, Oct. 2021, doi: 10.1007/s12187-021-09831-2.
  45. Perpusnas RI, “Statistik Pustakawan November 2022,” Pusat Pengembangan Pustakawan Perpustakaan Nasional RI, 2022. https://pustakawan.perpusnas.go.id/statistik-all-detil?mode=monthly&option=stat&stat_month=11&stat_year=2022 (accessed Nov. 28, 2022).
  46. E. Diener, R. A. Emmons, R. J. Larsen, and S. Griffin, “The Satisfaction With Life Scale,” Journal of Personality Assessment, vol. 49, no. 1, pp. 71–75, Feb. 1985, doi: 10.1207/s15327752jpa4901_13.
  47. W. Pavot and E. Diener, “Review of the Satisfaction With Life Scale,” Psychological Assessment, vol. 5, no. 2, pp. 164–172, 1993, doi: 10.1037/1040-3590.5.2.164.
  48. D. Watson, L. A. Clark, and A. Tellegen, “Development and Validation of Brief Measures of Positive and Negative Affect: The PANAS Scales,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, vol. 54, no. 6, pp. 1063–1070, 1988, doi: 10.1037/0022-3514.54.6.1063.
  49. C. D. Ryff, “Happiness is everything, or is it? Explorations on the meaning of psychological well-being,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, vol. 57, pp. 1069–1081, 1989, doi: 10.1037/0022-3514.57.6.1069.
  50. C. D. Ryff and C. L. M. Keyes, “The structure of psychological well-being revisited,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, vol. 69, pp. 719–727, 1995, doi: 10.1037/0022-3514.69.4.719.
  51. C. D. Ryff, “Psychological Well-Being Revisited: Advances in the Science and Practice of Eudaimonia,” Psychother Psychosom, vol. 83, no. 1, pp. 10–28, 2014, doi: 10.1159/000353263.
  52. D. J. Weiss, R. V. Dawis, and G. W. England, “Manual for the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire,” Minnesota Studies in Vocational Rehabilitation, vol. 22, pp. 120–120, 1967.
  53. T. Harpham, “The Measurement of Community Social Capital Through Surveys,” in Social Capital and Health, I. Kawachi, S. V. Subramanian, and D. Kim, Eds., New York, NY: Springer, 2008, pp. 51–62. doi: 10.1007/978-0-387-71311-3_3.
  54. Y. Sato et al., “Village health volunteers’ social capital related to their performance in Lao People’s Democratic Republic: a cross-sectional study,” BMC Health Services Research, vol. 14, no. 1, p. 123, Mar. 2014, doi: 10.1186/1472-6963-14-123.
  55. T. Gadsden, A. Maharani, S. Sujarwoto, B. E. Kusumo, S. Jan, and A. Palagyi, “Does social capital influence community health worker knowledge, attitude and practices towards COVID-19? Findings from a cross-sectional study in Malang district, Indonesia,” SSM – Population Health, vol. 19, p. 101141, Sep. 2022, doi: 10.1016/j.ssmph.2022.101141.
  56. A. F. Hayes, Introduction to Mediation, Moderation, and Conditional Process Analysis: A Regression-Based Approach, 3rd ed. New York: Guilford Press, 2022.

Article Statistics

Track views and downloads to measure the impact and reach of your article.

6

PDF Downloads

101 views

Metrics

PlumX

Altmetrics

Paper Submission Deadline

GET OUR MONTHLY NEWSLETTER

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Sign up for our newsletter, to get updates regarding the Call for Paper, Papers & Research.

    Subscribe to Our Newsletter

    Sign up for our newsletter, to get updates regarding the Call for Paper, Papers & Research.