Karsten Paul & Klaus Moser University of Erlangen-Nuremberg

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1 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 1 Incongruence as an explanation for the negative mental health effects of unemployment: Metaanalytic evidence Karsten Paul & Klaus Moser University of Erlangen-Nuremberg

2 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 2 Definition of Unemployment (according to ILO): The unemployed comprise all persons above a specific age who during the reference period were: a) without work ( ); b) currently available for work, ( ) and c) seeking work.

3 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 3 Unemployment as a state of incongruence Unemployed people are a specific subgroup of all the persons who are not in employment. They are those not-employed persons who prefer to be employed (in contrast to students, homemakers, retirees etc.). Unemployment is a state of incongruence between preference and reality with regard to a person s employment status.

4 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 4 Is incongruence as possible cause of distress? Consistency theory (Grawe, 2004): Humans strive for congruence between individual goals and perceived goal attainment. A lack of congruence is an essential cause of the formation and maintenance of psychopathological symptoms. First empirical results strongly endorse the theory.

5 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 5 General hypotheses 1. Unemployment is characterised by high levels of incongruence, i.e. a mismatch between employment preference and employment status. 2. This kind of incongruence is a cause of the distress that typically accompanies unemployment.

6 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 6 Specific hypotheses: 1. The difference between employed and unemployed persons with regard to their employment preference is small (Metaanalysis I). 2. Both groups are characterised by a strong preference for employment in contrast to non-employment (Meta-analysis I). Unemployed persons are in a state of incongruence, employed persons are not. 3. Incongruence is correlated with symptoms of distress, regardless of a person s current employment status (Metaanalysis II).

7 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 7 Meta-analysis I: Differences between employed and unemployed persons with regard to their preference for employment?

8 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 8 Meta-analysis I: Procedures Literature search: PsychINFO & own archive. Studies included: Quantitative comparison of employed and unemployed persons. Measures: Indicator variables of a person s preference for employment (e.g. employment commitment, work involvement, work ethic ). Measure of effect size: Cohen s d (mean differences expressed in standard deviation units). Estimation of d from: means and standard deviations, correlations, t-values, ANOVA F-values, proportions, verbal statements concerning significance levels. Fixed effects model

9 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 9 Meta-analysis I: Results Meta-analytic results for comparisons of employed and unemployed persons on indicators of employment preference K n unemp n emp d 95% CI Q All studies *** Outlier studies removed *** Note: k = number of effect sizes; n unemp = total sample size unemployed group; n emp = total sample size employed group; d = weighted average effect size, a positive value indicates stronger preference levels for employed persons in comparison to unemployed persons; CI = 95% confidence interval for d, Q = homogeneity statistic; *** p <

10 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 10 Meta-analysis I: Results Group difference: Significant (employed persons are characterized by a stronger preference for employment than unemployed persons). Size of effect: Very small (d = 0.07, equivalent to r = 0.04).

11 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 11 Meta-analysis I: Moderator analyses Moderator analyses for - gender (>= 50% females vs. < 50% females), - age (youths vs. adults), - level of education (rating high vs. low), - unemployment duration (<= / > 30 weeks) no significant moderator effects.

12 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 12 Meta-analysis I: Additional analysis Mean preference level above the midpoint of the scale: 93% of the unemployed samples, 100% of the employed samples. Both groups clearly prefer employment to nonemployment.

13 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 13 Meta-analysis I: Conclusion Employed persons have a stronger preference for employment than unemployed persons. The difference is small: Both groups are similar with regard to their mean preference level. Both groups clearly prefer employment to nonemployment. Unemployed persons typically are in a situation of incongruence (preference: employment; status: not employed) Employed persons typically are not in a situation of incongruence (preference: employment; status: employed)

14 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 14 Meta-analysis II: Correlation between employment status incongruence and distress?

15 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 15 Meta-analysis II: Procedures Literature search: PsychINFO & own archive. Studies included: Quantitative test of association of incongruence and distress among employed and/or unemployed persons. Measures: Indicator variables of employment preference (e.g. employment commitment, work involvement, work ethic ); indicator variables of mental health (mixed symptoms of distress, depression, anxiety, Well-being, self esteem). Measure of effect size: Pearson s r. Estimation of r from: correlations, means and standard deviations, partial correlations and regression coefficients. Fixed effects model

16 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 16 Meta-analysis II: Results Meta-analytic results for the association of status-incongruent levels of employment preference and impaired mental health Indicator of mental health k n r 95% CI Q Mixed symptoms of distress *** Depression *** Anxiety *** Well-being/life satisfaction *** Self esteem ** Note: k = number of effect sizes; n = sample size; r = weighted average effect size; CI = 95% confidence interval for r, Q = homogeneity statistic; *** p < 0.001; ** p < 0.01; A positive correlation indicates that status-incongruent levels of employment preference, i.e. high preference levels in case of unemployed persons and low preference levels in case of employed persons, are associated with diminished mental health.

17 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 17 Moderator analyses for employment status Meta-analysis II: Results Indicator Moderator Subgroup Q b k n r 95% CI Q w Mixed symptoms Employment status 28.98** * Unemployed *** Employed *** Depression Employment status Unemployed *** Employed ** Anxiety Employment status 20.45** * Unemployed * Employed

18 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 18 Moderator analyses for employment status Meta-analysis II: Results Indicator Moderator Subgroup Q b k n r 95% CI Q w Well-being Employment status 8.83** Unemployed * Employed *** Self esteem Employment status 3,90* Unemployed ** Employed Note: k = number of effect sizes; n = sample size; r = weighted average effect size; CI = 95% confidence interval for r, Q b = between-group + homogeneity estimate; Q w = within-group homogeneity estimate; *** p < 0.001; ** p < 0.01; * p < 0.05; p < 0.10; A positive correlation indicates that status-incongruent levels of employment preference, i.e. higher preference levels in case of unemployed persons and lower preference levels in case of employed persons, are associated with diminishing mental health.

19 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 19 Meta-analysis II: Results Significant correlation of employment preference and distress. Status-incongruent levels of employment preference are correlated with distress. Size of effects: Small to medium (r = 0.09 to r = 0.20). Not restricted to unemployed persons: Can be demonstrated among among employed persons, too. Interacting moderator effects of employment status and variable type: Effects larger for unemployed persons when negative-affectivity measures used. Effects larger for employed persons when positive-affectivity measures used

20 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 20 Meta-analysis I + II: Conclusion Incongruence between a person s employment preference and his or her current employment status is a typical characteristic of unemployment. Incongruence is associated with distress symptoms and reduced well-being. Incongruence deserves further attention as a possible explanation of unemployment distress.

21 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 21 Why are unemployed people s distress levels elevated in comparison to employed persons and persons who are out of the labour force (OLF)? Prevalence rates of minor psychological disorder in the western world (Median of 11 large epidemiological studies): Employees 11% Students 11% Retirees 16% Homemakers 18% Unemployed people 28%

22 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 22 Meta-analysis I: Comparison of employed and unemployed persons with regard to their preference for employment Additional analysis: Estimating the absolute level of employment preference Cohens d is a measure of the similarity, not of the absolute level of employment preference among employed and unemployed persons. It is possible, albeit unlikely, that both groups prefer nonemployment to employment. Purpose: To estimate the absolute level of employment preference among employed and unemployed persons. Method: Mean preference value of each sample expressed as proportion of the scale maximum (e.g. M = 6,4, Scale %) Computation of the median of all samples used in the metaanalysis.

23 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 23 Meta-analysis I: Comparison of employed and unemployed persons with regard to their preference for employment Additional analysis - results Table 2: Mean employment preference as percentage of scale maximum K Median Range Unemployed % 42.6% % Employed % 53.4% 94.3% Note: k represents the number of available percentages

24 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 24 A candidate variable for an explanation of the elevated distress levels of unemployed persons should be a characteristic of unemployment that differentiates unemployed persons from employed persons and all kinds of OLF-persons. should be a global and stable characteristic of unemployment, as the differences in prevalence rates can be found in several countries and can be traced back several decades. should be theoretically plausible as a cause of distress.

25 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 25 Fryer s Agency Restriction Model proposes two interesting candidate variables: Poverty, which is a typical and stable characteristic of unemployment, is likely to be less characteristic for all other groups and could be extected to cause disrtess. Future insecurity, which also is a typical and stable characteristic of unemployment, is likely to less characteristic for the other groups and could be esxpected to cause distress. Additional candidates?

26 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 26 Deprivation of the lantent functions of employment (Jahoda) seems to be of limited value as an explanation. This model can not satisfactorily explain the differences between unemployed and OLF-persons, as both groups should be deprived with regard to the latent functions of employment. Additional candidates?

27 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 27 Open questions Incongruence levels among OLF-Persons? Really causal effect on distress? Reasons for the strong preference for employment among the unemployed?

28 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 28 Meta-analysis I: Comparison of employed and unemployed persons with regard to their preference for employment Inclusion criteria Quantitative empirical comparison of employed an unemployed persons. Use of a measure that can be seen as an indicator of a persons preference for employment (usually employment commitment, work involvement, or work ethic ). Data presentation enables the computation of an effect size.

29 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 29 Meta-analysis I: Comparison of employed and unemployed persons with regard to their preference for employment Measure of effect size: Cohen s d d = M arbeitslos M erwerbstätig / SD pooled SD pooled = [(SD arbeits los ) 2 * (N arbeitslos 1) + (SD erwerbs tätig ) 2 * (N erwerbstätig 1)] / (N arbeits los +N erwerbstätig 2) Cohen s d expresses group differences in standard deviation units.

30 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 30 Meta-analysis I: Comparison of employed and unemployed persons with regard to their preference for employment Estimation of d from:... means and standard deviations... correlations... t-values... ANOVA F-values... proportions... verbal statements concerning significance levels

31 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 31 Meta-analysis II: Literature search PsychINFO Goal: Find studie with correlations between employment status preference and mental health among employed or unemployed persons Search term: (employment or unemployment) and (employment importance or employment commitment or employment motivation or work importance or work commitment or work motivation or work centrality or work value or work ethic) and (mental health or distress or well-being or depression or anxiety or self esteem or life satisfaction or happiness) Screening of own archive (see above)

32 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 32 Meta-analysis II: Correlation of employment status incongruence and distress Inclusion criteria Empirical test of an association between employment status preference and distress..... among employed and/or unemployed persons. Data presentation enables estimation of an effect size.

33 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 33 Meta-analysis II: Correlation of employment status incongruence and distress Measure of effect-size: Person s r

34 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 34 Meta-analysis II: Correlation of employment status incongruence and distress Estimation of r from:... means and standard deviations... t-values... partial correlations and regression coefficients

35 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 35 Meta-analysis I: Results after exclusion of outliers Group difference: Still significant (employed persons are characterized by a stronger preference for employment than unemployed persons). Size of effect: Still small (d = 0.10, equivalent to r = 0.05). Heterogeneity: Reduced.

36 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 36 Meta-analysis I: Results Meta-analytic results for comparisons of employed and unemployed persons on indicators of employment preference K n unemp n emp d 95% CI Q All studies *** Note: k = number of effect sizes; n unemp = total sample size unemployed group; n emp = total sample size employed group; d = weighted average effect size, a positive value indicates stronger preference levels for employed persons in comparison to unemployed persons; CI = 95% confidence interval for d, Q = homogeneity statistic; *** p <

37 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 37 Metaanalysis II: Results Table 3: Meta-analytic results for the association of status-incongruent levels of employment preference and impaired mental health Indicator of mental health k N r 95% CI Q Mixed symptoms of distress ,44** * Depression ,16** * Anxiety ,08*** Well-being / life satisfaction ,15*** Self esteem ,05** Note: k = number of effect sizes; n = sample size; r = weighted average effect size; CI = 95% confidence interval for r, Q = homogeneity statistic; *** p < 0.001; ** p < 0.01; A positive correlation indicates that status-incongruent levels of employment preference, i.e. high preference levels in case of unemployed persons and low preference levels in case of employed persons, are associated with diminished mental health.

38 Employment status incongruence - meta-analyses Seite 38 Thank You!