Job satisfaction in a group of patients with tinnitus

Abstract

Background: Tinnitus is an auditory impression without any external auditory stimulus. It may cause negative symptoms (anxiety, insomnia, depression) significantly affecting work performance and job satisfaction.

Objective: To evaluate the job satisfaction in tinnitus sufferers.

Methods: Cross-sectional study were conducted and 51 individuals (23-70 years) were recruited. Participants completed two questionnaires: Tinnitus Handicap Inventory and Job Satisfaction Scale.

Results: People affected by tinnitus report higher job satisfaction than healthy people. Job satisfaction was significantly related to age: r = 0.31; p < 0.05 in all tinnitus patients. There was a correlation between job satisfaction and tinnitus severity but only in people with normal hearing (-0.69; p < 0.05).

Conclusions: The results show that job satisfaction is affected by the level of tinnitus annoyance (from both its emotional and functional aspects), but only in people with normal hearing. In future research it is recommended that additional factors be investigated, both work and non-work related, to thoroughly explore the impact of tinnitus on job satisfaction.

Keywords: Hearing loss; mental health; psychological functioning; work satisfaction.