What are the psychological effects of unemployment?

These are the emotional and behavioral elements associated with unemployment.

Employment gives us economic security, time structuring and identity, aspects which disappear when we become unemployed.

At first, being unemployed can be seen in multiple ways. Some see it as a kind of "vacation" while others are more concerned, but over time it has serious repercussions on our view of ourselves and our health.

We will now take a closer look at the psychological effects of unemployment, the phases in which they appear, and how they affect our health.The phases in which they appear and what we can do to counteract it.

The main psychological effects of unemployment, and its symptoms.

Work is a fundamental part of our lives. Not only does it provide us with economic security, but it is also often considered a source of well-being and psychological and social balance. It is true that many people see work as something negative, but employment is actually an important protective factor for our health, since it gives us identity, economic stability and helps us to structure our time and feel useful and valued. gives us identity, economic stability and helps us to structure our time and to feel useful and valued..

However, at some point in our lives we have to face a situation of unemployment. It may be because we have never had a job before and are looking for what will be our first professional experience or it may also happen that we have been fired from our previous job introducing us into the uncertainty of unemployment.

Regardless of how the unemployment situation has been reached, if it is prolonged over time, the unemployed person will begin to suffer a series of emotional, psychological and social transformations that should not be underestimated. In fact, the health of unemployed people is more fragile than that of employed people, with twice the risk of suffering psychological problems such as depression, anxiety disorders and psychosomatization, as well as reduced psychological well-being and self-esteem.

Naturally, each person may experience the unemployment situation differently.. Each person is unique in the way they relate to the world, with different resources and circumstances, and social and family support may also vary. Even so, if an unemployed person does not manage to find a job for a long time, sooner or later his or her mental health will suffer, manifesting the serious psychological effects of unemployment.

Phases of job loss

At a glance, the main psychological effects of unemployment that we can mention are reduced self-esteem, stress, anxiety, and negative feelings in general, such as devaluation, hopelessness, irritability and apathy.. These symptoms do not manifest themselves at the beginning of unemployment, but after a few months following a process that involves several phases.

Phase 1. Enthusiasm

This stage lasts approximately the first six months after the person loses his or her job.. Although with surprise and some uncertainty, the person tries to see the bad news of their dismissal in a somewhat positive way, believing in their chances of finding a new job and seeing this stage as a vacation period. They look to the future with optimism and put energy into looking for a new job. Their expectations are high. It may be the case that they go through this phase as a crisis but it is not serious.

Although the person looks at his new unemployed status with positivity, this new condition is not fully assumed, much less introduced as a characteristic of his identity. He sees this situation as something temporary, an impasse, something that will end up being fixed in a short time. Some symptoms typical of a crisis phase may also appear, such as mood swings, anguish, worry about the future, irritation and insomnia.

Phase 2. Stagnation

This stage is between six and 18 months since the person lost his or her job. The person who has not found a job in the first stage will begin to rethink his or her situation, his or her value as a person and evaluate his or her expectations, trying to see if they were unrealistic.The person who has not found a job in the first stage will begin to rethink his situation, his value as a person and evaluate his expectations, trying to see if they were unrealistic. As demotivation and disenchantment with the new situation appear, it is normal that active job searches begin to be reduced and professional preferences change, looking for something more desperate.

It is here that the symptoms of crisis that may have appeared in the first stage begin to worsen. In addition, many people begin to feel ashamed or guilty about not finding a job, and as a result feel very irritable and nervous, sometimes even aggressive.

Stage 3. Listlessness

This third stage is between 18 and 24 months after losing the job. Here people begin to become resigned to their condition, introducing the word "unemployed" into their identity.. Their emotional state tends towards depression, in addition to feelings of inferiority, apathy, listlessness, hopelessness, failure and sadness. The person feels like a real failure for not finding a job or because no one wants to hire him/her.

Phase 4. Total resignation

This stage would begin about 24 months after losing the job. The person has not found anything new for more than two years and has lost all hope of returning to work, and is totally resigned to it. He/she no longer looks for a job because he/she considers it a waste of time.He even feels anxious about being rejected again in an interview or not being called even though he has handed out resumes all over the city.

The unemployed person has a great emptiness inside, seeing himself as less valuable than people who do work and, also, as if his former professional status, that is, the name by which he defined himself in relation to his profession (e.g., doctor, butcher, teacher...) no longer defines him. They are no longer anything like that, they are now "Peter the unemployed" or "Mary the jobless". This makes them chronically frustrated.

Moreover, the more time passes, the less they feel that they will be able to do the old job with the same commitment. with the same commitment. One has the impression that one is losing one's faculties, that the practice that had been improving over time has been lost, that one would have to make the same effort as when one started as a young person... and other impressions that cause the person to withdraw even more and not want to look for a job.

Psychological characteristics of unemployment

Having seen how unemployment involves different psychological problems at different stages we can go further into a few characteristics of the absence of work. Many unemployed people feel as if they are unseen, as if they are invisible and removed from the economic and social systemThey feel as if they are invisible and apart from the economic and social system, since in their belief system those who do not work do not contribute to society.

Another characteristic of unemployment, which can occur as soon as we receive the news of dismissal, is confusion and disorganization of time. Work imposes schedules on us that, although we may not like them, end up giving us structure in our daily lives. We get up to go to work, we go, we work and we come back at a certain time, having daily guidelines of what to do. When we become unemployed, these patterns are lost and we become disoriented, running the risk of the days flying by without doing anything at all.

Another very worrying phenomenon that can be associated with unemployment is that the person reduces his or her social interaction. When we work we have to interact with our colleagues and boss, which, even if we do not like them, gives us a certain social life. It also happens that when you have a job you go out with your friends to let off steam and interact with your family. When a person loses his job, he may feel so ashamed that he abandons his friendships.They may also not want to talk to their family because they are very dissatisfied with their situation, which ends up hurting their bonds.

What to do?

As we have seen, the more time we spend unemployed, the more our mental health suffers. Depressive symptoms, anxiety, irritability and feelings of hopelessness and worthlessness may appear. In the event of these problems, we should consult a psychologist and also a professional to help us find a job and manage unemployment. We must not give up and we must keep looking because, although it may take some time, sooner or later we will find something.

The first thing to do is to take an active attitude from the very beginning of unemployment.. We can see the new situation as a kind of vacation, but not in the sense of lazing around, but as a rest. Even so, we must take a more positive and active attitude, avoiding a negative interpretation of our unemployment and being clear that the more we look the more likely we will find something. While we are looking for something we can take the opportunity to expand our training and recycle ourselves, making us more competitive in the labor market.

Unemployment is a temporary and transient situation. It is true that the economic crises have not helped to find jobs quickly, and that age is not a factor that helps either, but even so, we must not give up and make the "unemployed" identity take root in our minds. we must not give up and make the "unemployed" identity take root in our minds.. The more we move the more we will shorten this situation and, if we are not seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, we can always consider what other job options we have.

Finally, and as an almost more important aspect than the previous ones, we must organize our time, we must organize our time. As we said, losing our job means that we are left with many empty hours throughout the day, which is a bitter situation but now that we have free time we can take advantage of it. The time has come to dedicate ourselves to ourselves, doing our hobbies, practicing sports, taking care of ourselves and training ourselves. It is especially useful to assign a time slot to search for job openings on a daily basis.

References:

• Paul, Karsten & Moser, Klaus. (2009). Unemployment Impairs Mental Health: Meta-Analyses. Journal of Vocational Behavior. 74. 264-282. 10.1016/j.jvb.2009.01.001.