A Comparative Study of Job Satisfaction, Occupational Stress, Work–Life Balance, and Organizational Commitment among Employees of Nationalized and Private Sector Banks in Bhagalpur Division, Bihar Author Job satisfaction, Occupational stress, Work–life balance, Organizational commitment, Nationalised banks, Private banks, Banking employees. The banking sector has undergone remarkable transformation over the past two decades due to rapid technological advancement, financial liberalization, digital banking, increasing customer expectations, and intense market competition. These changes have substantially influenced the psychological experiences of bank employees by altering their work environment, job responsibilities, and organizational expectations. Employees working in nationalised and private sector banks often encounter different organizational cultures, employment policies, performance appraisal systems, workload, and career development opportunities. These organizational differences may significantly influence employees’ job satisfaction, occupational stress, work–life balance, and organizational commitment. The present study aimed to compare these psychological characteristics among employees of nationalised and private sector banks operating in Bhagalpur Division, Bihar. A descriptive comparative research design was adopted. A total of 240 employees, comprising 120 employees from nationalised banks and 120 employees from private sector banks, were selected through stratified random sampling. Standardized psychological instruments were used to assess job satisfaction, occupational stress, work–life balance, and organizational commitment. Descriptive statistics, independent sample t-tests, Pearson’s correlation, and Cohen’s d were employed for data analysis. The findings indicated that employees of nationalised banks reported significantly higher job satisfaction, stronger organizational commitment, and better work–life balance than employees of private banks. Conversely, employees in private sector banks experienced significantly higher occupational stress. Correlation analysis revealed positive relationships among job satisfaction, work–life balance, and organizational commitment, while occupational stress showed significant negative associations with these variables. The study highlights the importance of supportive organizational practices, effective stress management, employee welfare policies, and work–life balance initiatives in improving psychological well-being and organizational effectiveness. The findings contribute to organizational psychology and banking management by providing empirical evidence regarding psychological differences between employees working in different banking systems. International Journal of Arts, Humanities, Social Sciences and Commerce 2026-01-06 Text application/pdf 10.65919/ijahssc.2026.v2i1005 en