Meta analysis and it's application to job satisfaction

With the rapid changes and developments experienced today, the ease of accessibility to technology significantly affects information sharing. With the simplification of accessing the desired information, the creation of information also became easy. For this reason, the number of studies performed today increases day by day compared to the past. The number of scientific studies carried out by researchers in the literature is increasing day by day. Studies show that even though studies are on the same subject, different or identical findings were reached individually. The need for bringing the results of individual studies to a single conclusion is increasing. In such cases, meta-analyses are preferred to reach a general conclusion of any subject. Meta-analysis is a statistical method aiming to reach a general conclusion about the related subject by combining the research findings made in different places, times, and conditions on the same subject. The main purpose of this research is to examine the general job satisfaction levels of employees according to gender, marital status, education level, and seniority variables by using the meta-analysis method. A total of 189 studies published between January 2003 and May 2020 were examined within the research scope. For obtaining the data, the inclusion criteria were determined, and a coding form was prepared. Based on the inclusion criteria, a total of 114 studies were found to be suitable for meta-analysis. CMA (Comprehensive Meta-Analysis) statistics program was used to analyze the data related to the study. In the research, firstly, the effect size was calculated for each individual study included in the analysis. Then, a heterogeneity test was applied, and it was decided to use the random effect model. The availability of publication bias was checked in the study using the Funnel Plot graph, Begg and Mazumdur Rank colleration test, and Egger regression analysis. Based on analysis result, publication bias was not observed. As a result of the meta-analysis, it was determined that the marital status, education level, and seniority variable have a positive but weak effect on the employees' general job satisfaction; however, the gender variable did not affect the general job satisfaction. The study 's findings were interpreted considering the literature, and after that, various suggestions were also mentioned. Keywords: Job satisfaction, meta analysis, effect size, publication bias.