Exploring Factors of PhD Students’ Satisfaction Through the Lens of Herzberg’s Two-factor Theory and Future Research Agenda

The purpose of this paper is to explore factors of PhD students’ satisfaction during the doctoral study through a systematic literature review. Findings are analyzed based on Herzberg two factor theory. Identifying 64 papers from the Scopus database, only 12 papers are included in this systematic review. The study explored intrinsic (autonomy, competence, relatedness, enthusiasm, and engagement) and extrinsic (supervisor, peer group, staff, institution culture, policy, and resources) factors of PhD students’ satisfaction. Being the first literature review, this study provides all the factors of PhD students’ satisfaction. It also provides gap areas and directions for future research.