Employment and well-being: How much work should we do in the 'good life'?

Location
Muirhead Tower, Room 710
Dates
Thursday 5 February 2015 (12:30-14:00)
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Workshop Leader(s): Dr Brendan Burchell

Registration is not required please just come along.

This presentation will review research concerning the effects of employment on wellbeing, and the reasons given as to why employment has this positive effect. The beneficial effects of employment on well-being, when compared to unemployed individuals, has been well researched and the effects are robust and strong. Full-time home-makers also have lower levels of well-being than employees, even though they “choose” that status. There is also a large body of literature giving a variety of explanations as to what it is about employment that is so good, or unemployment that is so bad. Some researchers attempt an explanation with single constructs (e.g. self-esteem) others have developed more specific theories of unemployment (e.g. Jahoda, Warr).

There is also a body of research that finds the negative effects of too much work, which led to the European Working Time Directive to limit working time to 48 hours per week. Yet, surprisingly, there is no research known to us as to what is the best “dose” of employment each week to maximise wellbeing, nor has there been any attempt to measure the minimum effective dose of employment. Might it be as little as one day or half a day per week?

This presentation will draw together theoretical models of unemployment and wellbeing, and empirical studies of the quality of part-time work, the effects of job insecurity and zero-hours contracts, to suggest answers to these questions and consider the type of research that might provide better answers to the question.

Brendan J Burchell is Reader in the Social Sciences in the Department of Sociology at the Faculty of Human, Social, and Political Science at the University of Cambridge. His recent research has included the effects of labour market experiences on psychological well-being, work intensification and job insecurity; Occupational Gender Segregation, part-time work and gender differences in working conditions and careers, restless leg syndrome and financial phobia.