| The purpose of this research is to determine if greater participatory management is linked to greater workers' job satisfaction. This study focuses on a sample population of Thai workers in a design-based business environment, following the economic crisis over the past few years, to see if their managers' use of participatory management has an impact on their job satisfaction.;A 101-item instrument with four scales from the Participatory Management Styles Inventory (PMSI), three scales from the Job Descriptive Index (JDI), the Job In General (JIG) scale, and five demographic questions are distributed to the workplace of 12 design-based businesses (including the pilot firm). Out of the 1,000 workers under survey, 694, or 69.4% responded.;The outcomes of the study suggest that: (1) Among Thai workers in the design-based business environment, a positive correlation exists between participatory management and job satisfaction. (2) Among Thai workers in the design-based business environment, involvement of workers in their assignments has greater correlation to job satisfaction than work-related issues, whereas information sharing has the least correlation to job satisfaction. (3) Among Thai workers in the design-based business environment, participatory management has greater correlation to satisfaction with job supervision than satisfaction with opportunities for promotion, and the least correlation to satisfaction with present work. (4) Among Thai workers in the design-based business environment, gender, age category, education level, and job classification do not affect the relationship between participatory management and job satisfaction, with the exception of years of service.;This study shows that participatory management is a tool that has tremendous potential in a Thai context for increasing the job satisfaction of workers. This, in turn, is associated with boosted morale, reduced absenteeism, decreased turnover, less stress and discord within the work group, as well as fewer accidents in the workplace. Likewise, participatory-management practices are significantly related to increased productivity, enhanced competitive advantage, and improved financial performance.;This researcher hopes that this study will contribute to the growing body of evidence from the West while broadening the neglected research knowledge of the Thai cultural values that motivate the Thai workers in their workplace. |
