The Experience of Time at Work: Relationship to Communication Load, Job Satisfaction, and Interdepartmental Communication

Abstract

This study examined 393 organizational members' reported communication load, job satisfaction, and interdepartmental communication satisfaction in relation to their experience of time along eleven dimensions—flexibility, linearity, pace, punctuality, delay, scheduling, separation, urgency, scarcity, and future and present time foci. Results indicate that organizational members who experienced their time as more delayed, more flexible, and more oriented toward the future tended to report higher levels of communication load. Additionally, members who characterized their work as more punctual and oriented toward the future were more satisfied with their jobs, while those who experienced work as faster paced were less satisfied. Finally, the organizational members most satisfied with communication among departments reported their work patterns as more linear and more strongly oriented toward the future, while members who reported their work as more delayed were least satisfied with such interdepartmental interactions.