Integration of job satisfaction into the Personal Wellbeing Index - analysis of psychometric properties and sociodemographic influences among employees of the Croatian Health Insurance Fund

Q: What is the modified Personal Wellbeing Index used in the study (PWI-J)?

The study uses a Personal Wellbeing Index modification that incorporates a job satisfaction domain, forming the PWI-J to better assess subjective wellbeing in working populations.

Q: How reliable is the PWI-J instrument in the study?

PWI-J shows high reliability with Cronbach’s α=0.896, indicating strong internal consistency of the modified index.

Q: What did the study find about the spillover effect from job satisfaction to overall life satisfaction?

Spillover was confirmed, with a reported correlation ρ=0.633 and statistical significance P<0.001, supporting a moderate link between job satisfaction and broader life satisfaction.

Sep 29, 2026

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Study examining subjective wellbeing among administrative employees of Croatia’s universal health insurance provider, focusing on a modified Personal Wellbeing Index that integrates job satisfaction (PWI-J). The research evaluates psychometric properties, tests sociodemographic influences, and validates the job satisfaction domain inclusion using a 1,051-person convenience sample from an anonymous online survey in 2018. Reliability is high (Cronbach’s α=0.896); the two-factor structure explains 65% variance, with job satisfaction spillover confirmed (ρ=0.633, P<0.001), while education, gender, and age shape material and socioemotional outcomes.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages9

Reading Time23 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Introduction

Subjective wellbeing vs subjective quality of life

Personal Wellbeing Index and its limitations

Rationale for integrating job satisfaction

Methods and Analyses

Reliability and factor structure

Sociodemographic effects

Results

PWI-J reliability and factor structure

Domain scores and spillover effect

Discussion and Implications

Occupational health assessment value

Recommendations and limitations

Future Research

265 DubravacJ, Barić R. Integration of job satisfaction into the Personal Wellbeing Index: analysis of employees of the Croatian Health Insurance Fund Arh Hig Rada Toksikol 2025;76:265–273 Original article DOI: 10.2478/aiht-2025-76-4060 Integration of job satisfaction into the Personal Wellbeing Index: analysis of psychometric properties and sociodemographic influences among employees of the Croatian Health Insurance Fund Jozo Dubravac and Renata Barić University of Zagreb Faculty of Kinesiology, Zagreb, Croatia [Received in October 2025; Similarity Check in October 2025; Accepted in December 2025] This study examines subjective wellbeing (SWB) among administrative staff of a Croatian universal health insurance coverage provider in a transitional economy, hypothesising a moderate spillover effect from job satisfaction to overall life satisfaction. Our aim was to assess the psychometric properties of a modified Personal Wellbeing Index that incorporates job satisfaction (PWI-J), evaluate sociodemographic influences, and validate the job satisfaction domain inclusion in the index. The hypothesis was tested on a convenience sample of 1,051 Croatian employees of the Croatian Health Insurance Fund who completed an anonymous online survey in 2018. Analyses encompassed descriptive statistics, reliability testing, correlations, ANOVA/MANOVA for sociodemographic effects, and exploratory factor analysis (EFA) . The PWI-J exhibited high reliability (Cronbach’s α=0.896), and its two-factor structure (material-practical and socioemotional wellbeing) explained 65 % of the variance. The mean PWI-J score was 65.01 on a 0–100 scale. Standard of living and future security received the lowest score (around 52) and relationships and community the highest (77–81). Spillover was confirmed (ρ=0.633, P<0.001) . Compared to the Australian wellbeing triage ranges, participants reported lower economic satisfaction but stronger community ties, with higher education associated with better material outcomes, female gender with enhanced social satisfaction, and younger workers (19–34 years old) with higher socioemotional scores. Our findings underscore economic vulnerabilities balanced by social resilience and validate PWI-J for occupational health assessments. Recommendations include targeted interventions for lower-educated and older workers. Limitations encompass cross-sectional design, self-report bias, and limited generalisability. Future research should pursue longitudinal studies on possible mediators, such as resilience. KEY WORDS: Croatia; occupational health; quality of life; resilience; spillover effect; subjective wellbeing Unlike quality of life (QoL) assessments which include objective indicators, such as income or physical health, subjective quality of life (sQoL) assessments focus on personal perceptions shaped by cultural and social contexts (1) . One such subjective cognitive and emotional assessment that includes life satisfaction, happiness, anda sense of purpose is the so called subjective wellbeing (SWB) (2) . However, for the sake of conceptual disambiguation it is important to distinguish SWB from sQoL, even though these terms are often used interchangeably in the literature. SWB is primarily concerned with emotional and cognitive evaluation of one’s life, whereas sQoL encompasses a broader range of life domains, including subjective perception of objective factors. It is usually measured with the Personal Wellbeing Index for adults (PWI-A), which focuses on satisfaction across life domains, without including affective components of SWB, using tools such as the PhenX Toolkit (3) . According to the Personal Wellbeing Index manual,“Subjective Life Quality can only be validly, empirically measured, by asking for an individual’s opinion about their feelings”(4) . The PWI-A has been translated into over 30 languages and validated in Croatia (5). With its Cronbach’s α typically ranging from 0.70 to 0.85 (6, p. 760), t

FAQs

What is the modified Personal Wellbeing Index used in the study (PWI-J)?

The study uses a Personal Wellbeing Index modification that incorporates a job satisfaction domain, forming the PWI-J to better assess subjective wellbeing in working populations.

How reliable is the PWI-J instrument in the study?

PWI-J shows high reliability with Cronbach’s α=0.896, indicating strong internal consistency of the modified index.

What did the study find about the spillover effect from job satisfaction to overall life satisfaction?

Spillover was confirmed, with a reported correlation ρ=0.633 and statistical significance P<0.001, supporting a moderate link between job satisfaction and broader life satisfaction.

Sep 29, 2026

Upload by Ben