Office Automation and Job Satisfaction Among Administrative Staff in Federal Universities in North East Nigeria

This study empirically examines the relationship between office automation and job satisfaction among administrative staff in federal universities in Nigeria's North East geopolitical zone, covering Adamawa, Gombe, and Taraba States. Office automation has been widely adopted in Nigerian federal universities as part of e-administration reforms, yet its subjective impact on the satisfaction of administrative employees who must adapt to automated workflows has received insufficient analytical attention. The research employs a correlational survey design, targeting registry officers, bursary staff, library personnel, and heads of administrative units in four federal universities. Validated questionnaires incorporating the Office Automation Adoption Scale and the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire are administered to 295 respondents. The Job Characteristics Model and the Person-Technology Fit Theory provide the theoretical framework, with literature from 2021 to 2024 supporting the analysis. The study examines how specific automation dimensions (document automation, communication automation, and scheduling automation) relate to job satisfaction subdimensions including intrinsic satisfaction, extrinsic satisfaction, and general satisfaction. Regression analysis identifies the strongest satisfaction predictors. Recommendations target university management and the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) welfare committee. Keywords: office automation, job satisfaction, administrative staff, federal universities, North East Nigeria