Does Happiness Matter? The Effect of Teacher Job Satisfaction on Productivity

Abstract

This paper investigates how teacher job satisfaction affects productivity as measured by the high school graduation and four-year college enrollment rates. Using data from the Schools and Staffing Survey, this study implements multiple estimation methods to determine the effect of teacher job satisfaction on student outcomes. The findings indicate a positive relationship between the average level of teacher job satisfaction within a school and the graduation and college enrollment rates. The teacher job satisfaction is inversely related to diversity in opinion regarding job attributes.