- Joined
- Jul 14, 2008
- Messages
- 6,464
- Points
- 0
Ever noticed that Aussies are in general, happier than Singaporeans?
Money buys happiness, unless you earn more than $150,000
by: By Sarah Michael
From: news.com.au
October 31, 2012 12:24PM
Life satisfaction drops when you earn $125,000
People on $75,000 happier than those on $150,000
Good news: Australians are working less hours
What salary amount do you think would make you happy?
More than $60,000 More than $80,000 More than $100,000 More than $150,000
Vote now
IT seems money really does buy you happiness… but not if you earn more than $150,000.
Research from psychometric testing company Onetest found people who earn between $100,000 and $124,999 a year are the happiest, with 86 per cent of those earners saying they are satisfied with life.
But the satisfaction rate starts to drop for those who earn more than $125,000, and again for those who earn more than $150,000.
And it's actually better to earn between $75,000 and $99,999 than it is to earn more than $150,000, with 82 per cent of the lesser earners "satisfied" compared with just 80 per cent of those on the higher income.
Onetest head of psychology Cherie Curtis said this data showed salary and finances influence people’s satisfaction, but only up to a point.
“Once you have finances in order, you can provide for family, pay your bills and you’re earning in line with your peers, motivation through money starts to have a plateau effect,” Ms Curtis said.
“There could also be correlation between higher salary and seniority, and there could be a correlation between seniority and stress.”
The study surveyed almost 3000 Australians across a range of industries who had undergone cognitive ability testing as part of a graduate recruitment program between 2002 and 2011.
The research measured satisfaction levels by industry and found mining, oil and gas workers are happiest, followed by defence workers, insurance workers and those working with the environment.
The least satisfied workers are in the sales and marketing industry, followed by hospitality, sports and tourism workers and arts and humanities employees.
Scroll down to see a full breakdown of satisfaction by industry.
Ms Curtis said despite reports that the fly-in fly-out work of the mining and gas industry is demanding, the industries were well-resourced to look after their staff.
“[Organisations] have better employee benefit schemes and they invest a lot of time and energy in supporting their workforce,” she said.
Ms Curtis added that those surveyed had been in the industry for less than 10 years and may not have hit a “weary period” yet.
“They’re less likely to have the commitments of family and a mortgage, so fly-in fly-out suits them,” she said.
The study also suggested a correlation between high earning industries and high satisfaction, with mining, oil and gas workers on the highest average salary ($91,903) which is about 42 per cent more than the average worker’s salary of $64,697.
This was followed by the average salary in insurance on $79,688 and banking and finance on $76,923.
The hospitality, sport and tourism industry still had the lowest current salary at $42,695, followed by research and development at $45,455 and arts and humanities at $48,864.
The study also found that it pays to be smart, but not necessarily in an academic way.
There was a correlation between high cognitive ability - meaning the ability to retain information and problem solve - and high salaries.
People who registered "far above average" cognitive ability received starting salaries that were on average 18 per cent higher than their peers with “far below average” scores.
The relationship was found to be twice as powerful as a person's grade point average in predicting their first salary.
Ms Curtis said cognitive ability was a powerful predictor of job performance.
“Unfortunately a lot of people rely on the GPA to shortlist candidates but it’s fairly flawed because it’s not a standardised measure across the country,” she said.
“People with higher cognitive ability tend to solve those things more effectively and more quickly, and they respond better to training and learning.”
Industry by percentage of workers satisfied
Mining Oil and Gas – 87 per cent
Defence - 84 per cent
Insurance - 81 per cent
Environment - 81 per cent
Consulting - 79 per cent
Government - 77 per cent
Utilities - 77 per cent
Law - 75 per cent
Engineering - 75 per cent
Health - 75 per cent
Information Technology - 73 per cent
Construction - 71 per cent
Banking and Finance - 68 per cent
Business and Commerce - 68 per cent
Research and Development - 66 per cent
Fast Moving Consumer Goods - 63 per cent
Accounting - 63 per cent
Arts and Humanities - 60 per cent
Hospitality, Sports and Tourism - 55 per cent
Marketing and Sales - 54 per cent
Read more: http://www.news.com.au/business/wor...00/story-e6frfm9r-1226507456578#ixzz2ArTYmDPE
Money buys happiness, unless you earn more than $150,000
by: By Sarah Michael
From: news.com.au
October 31, 2012 12:24PM
Life satisfaction drops when you earn $125,000
People on $75,000 happier than those on $150,000
Good news: Australians are working less hours
What salary amount do you think would make you happy?
More than $60,000 More than $80,000 More than $100,000 More than $150,000
Vote now
IT seems money really does buy you happiness… but not if you earn more than $150,000.
Research from psychometric testing company Onetest found people who earn between $100,000 and $124,999 a year are the happiest, with 86 per cent of those earners saying they are satisfied with life.
But the satisfaction rate starts to drop for those who earn more than $125,000, and again for those who earn more than $150,000.
And it's actually better to earn between $75,000 and $99,999 than it is to earn more than $150,000, with 82 per cent of the lesser earners "satisfied" compared with just 80 per cent of those on the higher income.
Onetest head of psychology Cherie Curtis said this data showed salary and finances influence people’s satisfaction, but only up to a point.
“Once you have finances in order, you can provide for family, pay your bills and you’re earning in line with your peers, motivation through money starts to have a plateau effect,” Ms Curtis said.
“There could also be correlation between higher salary and seniority, and there could be a correlation between seniority and stress.”
The study surveyed almost 3000 Australians across a range of industries who had undergone cognitive ability testing as part of a graduate recruitment program between 2002 and 2011.
The research measured satisfaction levels by industry and found mining, oil and gas workers are happiest, followed by defence workers, insurance workers and those working with the environment.
The least satisfied workers are in the sales and marketing industry, followed by hospitality, sports and tourism workers and arts and humanities employees.
Scroll down to see a full breakdown of satisfaction by industry.
Ms Curtis said despite reports that the fly-in fly-out work of the mining and gas industry is demanding, the industries were well-resourced to look after their staff.
“[Organisations] have better employee benefit schemes and they invest a lot of time and energy in supporting their workforce,” she said.
Ms Curtis added that those surveyed had been in the industry for less than 10 years and may not have hit a “weary period” yet.
“They’re less likely to have the commitments of family and a mortgage, so fly-in fly-out suits them,” she said.
The study also suggested a correlation between high earning industries and high satisfaction, with mining, oil and gas workers on the highest average salary ($91,903) which is about 42 per cent more than the average worker’s salary of $64,697.
This was followed by the average salary in insurance on $79,688 and banking and finance on $76,923.
The hospitality, sport and tourism industry still had the lowest current salary at $42,695, followed by research and development at $45,455 and arts and humanities at $48,864.
The study also found that it pays to be smart, but not necessarily in an academic way.
There was a correlation between high cognitive ability - meaning the ability to retain information and problem solve - and high salaries.
People who registered "far above average" cognitive ability received starting salaries that were on average 18 per cent higher than their peers with “far below average” scores.
The relationship was found to be twice as powerful as a person's grade point average in predicting their first salary.
Ms Curtis said cognitive ability was a powerful predictor of job performance.
“Unfortunately a lot of people rely on the GPA to shortlist candidates but it’s fairly flawed because it’s not a standardised measure across the country,” she said.
“People with higher cognitive ability tend to solve those things more effectively and more quickly, and they respond better to training and learning.”
Industry by percentage of workers satisfied
Mining Oil and Gas – 87 per cent
Defence - 84 per cent
Insurance - 81 per cent
Environment - 81 per cent
Consulting - 79 per cent
Government - 77 per cent
Utilities - 77 per cent
Law - 75 per cent
Engineering - 75 per cent
Health - 75 per cent
Information Technology - 73 per cent
Construction - 71 per cent
Banking and Finance - 68 per cent
Business and Commerce - 68 per cent
Research and Development - 66 per cent
Fast Moving Consumer Goods - 63 per cent
Accounting - 63 per cent
Arts and Humanities - 60 per cent
Hospitality, Sports and Tourism - 55 per cent
Marketing and Sales - 54 per cent
Read more: http://www.news.com.au/business/wor...00/story-e6frfm9r-1226507456578#ixzz2ArTYmDPE
Last edited:
