This article examines how access to peer salary information impacts job satisfaction. The researchers studied a large sample of Danish workers and found that learning a peer earned a higher salary negatively impacted one's job satisfaction, while learning of a peer's lower salary had no effect. Specifically, learning a colleague in a similar position earned 10% more led to a 2% decrease in reported job satisfaction. This suggests that salaries should be kept private to maximize overall job satisfaction within an organization.

1. Running Header: EFFECT OF PEER SALARY INFORMATION ON JOB SATISFACTION 1
Effect of Peer Salary Information on Job Satisfaction
Kay Davonne Wakeham
University of Incarnate Word

2. EFFECT OF PEER SALARY INFORMATION ON JOB SATISFACTION 2
Citation
Card, D., Mas, A. Moretti, E. and Saez, E. B. (2012). Inequality at Work: The Effect of Peer
Salaries on Job Satisfaction. American Economic Review 102(6) 2981-3003.
Major Thesis a summary of the article, main points, its relationship to course content, and
your critical evaluation of the article’s supporting research/data)
Sunindijo et al., as cited by Taylor and Lloyd-Walker (2008) state that human factors are
critical in ensuring project success. Taylor and Lloyd note however, that research on emotional
intelligence (EI) in project management (PM) is scarce. This study addresses the role of EI on
project success by examining the impact of training in emotional competencies (EC) on a small
group of Project Management (PM) employees in a defense project organization in the US.
Lechler as cited by Taylor and Lloyd-Walker (2008, p.512) states that “when it comes to
projects, it’s the people that count”. El-Sabaa (as cited by Taylor & Lloyd-Walker) notes that
PM’s human skills have the greatest influence on their practices while technical skills have the
least impact. Although control is part of a PM’s role, in managing people, the act as an influencer
which requires interpersonal relationships and political skills (Leban & Zulauf as cited by Taylor
& Lloyd-Walker). Slovey and Mayer (as cited by Taylor & Lloyd-Walker) describe EI as a “the
subset of social intelligence that involves the ability to monitor one’s own and others’ feelings
and emotions to discriminate among them and to use this information to guide one’s thinking and
actions (p. 513). Taylor and Lloyd-Walker note that results confirm that EI can contribute to
improved individual and organizational performance. Links between job satisfaction and job
performance have been observed (Moorman as cited by Taylor & Lloyd-Walker) and there also
appear to be links between EI and job performance (Dash & Ashkanasy as cited by Taylor &

3. EFFECT OF PEER SALARY INFORMATION ON JOB SATISFACTION 3
Lloyd-Walker). Taylor and Lloyd-Walker cite that leadership skills have been identified by
several researchers as important for project managers. Some suggest increasing EI may assist in
the development of leadership skills and EI skills can be developed, leading to improved job
satisfaction and performance (Taylor & Lloyd-Walker).
The methodology of this research was outlined by Taylor and Lloyd-Walker (2008). The
study focused on three variables: EI, or competence; job satisfaction, and job performance.
Instruments were used to measure EI from the perspective of employee (self) and peer; job
performance from the perspective of peer, and job satisfaction from the perspective of the
employee. A total of total of 42 people (24 males and 18 women) completed all phases of the
research. Information was gathered from participant, their supervisor, subordinates and peers. To
measure EI, a 360 degree assessment provided feedback from direct reports on leadership
abilities and from peers and others on team work and co-operation. For non-supervisory
personnel, the measurement tool was a 270 degree assessment. The Ball Foundation instrument was
used to measure job satisfaction. Job performance was measured using a survey created from
commercially available job performance questionnaires found online and from job performance surveys
used in a similar work environment.
According to Taylor and Lloyd-Walker (2008) information was gathered before and after
the active group took part in EC training. In this study, the first stage EC training included a
PowerPoint briefing with descriptions and video examples of personal and social competencies
followed by a discussion of emotional and social competencies in the areas of self-awareness,
self-regulation, empathy and basic social communication skills (Taylor & Lloyd-Walker). In
addition, exercises was completed within a two week period of initial training that presented
situations to which EI skills were to be applied (Taylor & Lloyd-Walker).The timeframe from

4. EFFECT OF PEER SALARY INFORMATION ON JOB SATISFACTION 4
the original data gathering (pre training) to gathering of comparison data (post training) was six
months. Regression analysis was used to analyze the data collected (Taylor & Lloyd-Walker).
The findings discussed by Taylor and Lloyd-Walker (2008) reveal that improvements in
job satisfaction and performance and a moderate increase in EC indicate that development of EI
abilities can positively impact on project team. The researchers determined that for job
satisfaction, the EC training improved overall “active” group results by more than one point. For
job performance, their analysis showed that the EC training had a slight positive impact at the 10
per cent level statistically significant level and an increase of 0.580 points. The results for change
in EC show an overall positive impact on self-rating. Participant survey average revealed an
overall increase of 0.230 points (at the 1 per cent statistically significant level) in the self-ratings.
According to Snell and Bohlander (2012), the training and development of managers is
becoming critical because of increasing global competition and the retirement of the baby
boomer generation. An extensive variety of training methods are used for developing managers
including off-the-job experiences such as behavior modeling (Snell & Bohlander). The training
in this studied incorporated video examples of personal and social competencies followed by a
discussion of emotional and social competencies (Taylor & Lloyd-Walker, 2008). In addition,
exercises was completed within two weeks of initial training that presented situations for
application of EI skills (Taylor & Lloyd-Walker. The training in this study incorporated the
behavior modeling referenced by Snell and Bohlander. Snell and Bohlander suggest that training
evaluations include testing of the knowledge and skills of trainees before and after a training
program as well as comparing the test results to employees who have not participated in the
training. In this study, instruments were used to measure EI, job satisfaction and job performance
both before and after the EC training.

5. EFFECT OF PEER SALARY INFORMATION ON JOB SATISFACTION 5
This study cannot claim to have developed EI skills at a marked level, therefore further
research with other groups from military backgrounds undergoing more extensive EI training
may yield different results (Turner & Lloyd-Walker, 2008). Since the respondents were employed
by the US military, US federalgovernment and defense industry companies, the results may not extend to
non-military project teams. Turner and Lloyd-Walker suggest that future research should include
respondents from a more diverse range of project types and backgrounds. In addition, only six months of
time elapsed between the pre- and post- testing which may not have been enough time for the EI behavior
training to take hold.
Utility How useful is the article? How might it be applied to some aspect of the HR
environment? Provide specific examples
This study found that the development of EI abilities can have a positive impact on
project team members indicating that more extensive programs may benefit project-based
organizations (Taylor & Lloyd-Walker, 2008). Similar studies could be conducted with other
types of teams to determine if EI can also improve their team performance. If the results were
found to be significant, this would support the application of EI training in other team
environments. According to Goleman (1998), eighty to ninety percent of the competencies that
differentiate top performance are in the EI domain.
Conclusion
According to Taylor and Lloyd-Walker, EC training improved EI self-ratings, job satisfaction
and slightly increased job performance. Taylor and Lloyd-Walker found that EC can positively
impact project team members although the training in this case was not extensive and the time to
develop these competencies was only six months. The researchers suggest that this research be
duplicated both among other military related project teams and a broader scope of teams from
other industries to see if similar results can be duplicated.

6. EFFECT OF PEER SALARY INFORMATION ON JOB SATISFACTION 6
References
Snell, S.A. and Bohlander, G. (2013). Managing Human Resources. (16th ed.). Mason, OH:
South-Western – Cengage Learning.