Organizational trust, employee commitment and job satisfaction in Turkish hospitals: implications for public policy and health

Abstract

Background: Understanding relationships between factors that can affect organizational outcomes such as organizational trust, employee commitment and job satisfaction is important to foster healthy work conditions in organizations. Aims: This study aimed to determine the perception of Turkish physicians about organizational trust, employee commitment and job satisfaction and determine the relationships between them. Methods: A questionnaire was developed based on three standard survey instruments and given to 1679 doctors in four training and research hospitals in Istanbul, Turkey, in 2013. The Pearson correlation coefficient was calculated and regression analyses were conducted. Results: A total of 304 doctors completed the survey (18.1% response rate). Most were males (57%), over 30 years old (62%) and specialists (82%). A strong positive correlation was found among the study variables (P <= 0.001). Regression analyses indicated that organizational trust was a significant predictor of job satisfaction and commitment. Conclusions: Policy-makers need to consider implementing interventions in the health care system to improve the working conditions of current and future doctors in Turkey, in order to attract and retain them and prevent health care labour force losses.