Date of Conferral

10-26-2025

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Psychology

Advisor

David Mohr

Abstract

The postpandemic U.S. federal workforce has experienced shifts in policies and practices about telework, with mixed empirical evidence on its relationship with job satisfaction. Federal government leaders must understand this impact on telework and job satisfaction. Guided by self-determination theory and socioemotional selectivity theory, the purpose of this quantitative correlational study was to examine the relationship between telework usage and job satisfaction among federal employees, with age and supervisory status as moderating variables. Secondary data were from the 2023 Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey, with approximately 625,000 participants. The results of the multiple linear regression were statistically significant, F(11, 552,670) = 1610.63, p < .001, R² = .031. Telework showed a small but significant negative association with job satisfaction. Age and supervisory status were independently positive predictors. Interaction analyses revealed that age buffered the negative telework effect across all telework categories. Supervisory status moderated only the choose not-to-telework and infrequent groups. Telework and higher satisfaction were not universally linked. Nonteleworkers reported the greatest satisfaction after controlling for telework frequency, age, and supervisory status. Findings underscore the variance of telework impact by age and role, identifying hybrid workers, younger employees, and nonsupervisors as vulnerable subgroups. Recommendations include tailored hybrid work guidelines, mentorship for early career teleworkers, and virtual leadership training. The implications for positive social change include the potential for federal government leaders and personnel management to adopt these strategies to sustain morale while preserving the benefits of teleworking flexibility.

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