Washington, Apr 1 (IANS): Those unhappy in life are unlikely to find satisfaction at work, a new study says.

Nathan Bowling, assistant professor at Wright State University and colleagues Kevin Eschleman and Qiang Wang undertook an analysis of the results of 223 studies carried out between 1967 and 2008.

The studies investigated the combination of job satisfaction and life satisfaction or subjective well-being.

Bowling said: "We used studies that assessed these factors at two time points so that we could better understand the causal links between job satisfaction and life satisfaction."

"If people are satisfied at work, does this mean they will be more satisfied and happier in life overall? Or is the causal effect the opposite way around?" he said.

The causal link between subjective well-being and subsequent levels of job satisfaction was found to be stronger than the link between job satisfaction and subsequent levels of subjective well-being, according to a Wright release.

"The results suggest that if people are, or are predisposed to be, happy and satisfied in life generally, then they will be likely to be happy and satisfied in their work," Bowling said.

"However, the flip side of the finding could be that those people who are dissatisfied generally and who seek happiness through their work, may not find job satisfaction. Nor might they increase their levels of overall happiness by pursuing it," he added.