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11 - Work and Unemployment as Stressors

from Part II - The Social Context of Mental Health and Illness

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 June 2012

By
Mary Clare Lennon  and
Laura Limonic
Edited by
Teresa L. Scheid  and
Tony N. Brown
Teresa L. Scheid
Affiliation:
University of North Carolina, Charlotte
Tony N. Brown
Affiliation:
Vanderbilt University, Tennessee
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Summary

This chapter considers some of the mental health consequences of work and unemployment. Two major changes involved the nature of work and participation of women in the labor force. This chapter describes each of these changes, providing a context for the consideration of the relation of work and unemployment to mental health. First, there have been a number of changes in the types of work available in the United States. Second, women have entered the labor force in increasing numbers, partly in response to changes in the occupational structure. The chapter focuses on the stressful aspects of work; the benefits of work are examined indirectly when the authors consider the effects of unemployment. Many studies have found that the effect of unemployment is more negative among persons of low socioeconomic status. Several investigators have shown the importance of examining the economic context in which individuals experience unemployment.

Keywords

labeling theorymedical approachmental illnessstress theorystructural strain theorypsychological disorderpsychiatric diagnosis
Type
Chapter
Information
A Handbook for the Study of Mental Health
Social Contexts, Theories, and Systems
 , pp. 213 - 225
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2009

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