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The job insecurity of others : On the role of perceived national job insecurity during the COVID-19 pandemic
Shoss, Mindy Van Hootegem, Anahí Selenko, Eva De Witte, Hans
Shoss, Mindy
Van Hootegem, Anahí
Selenko, Eva
De Witte, Hans
Abstract
Political scientists and sociologists have highlighted insecure work as a societal ill underlying individuals’ lack of social solidarity (i.e., concern about the welfare of disadvantaged others) and political disruption. In order to provide the psychological underpinnings connecting perceptions of job insecurity with societally-relevant attitudes and behaviors, in this article the authors introduce the idea of perceived national job insecurity. Perceived national job insecurity reflects a person’s perception that job insecurity is more or less prevalent in their society (i.e., country). Across three countries (US, UK, Belgium), the study finds that higher perceptions of the prevalence of job insecurity in one’s country is associated with greater perceptions of government psychological contract breach and poorer perceptions of the government’s handling of the COVID-19 crisis, but at the same time is associated with greater social solidarity and compliance with COVID-19 social regulations. These findings are independent of individuals’ perceptions of threats to their own jobs.
Keywords
COVID-19, government psychological contract breach, job insecurity, social solidarity
Date
2023
Type
Journal article
Journal
Economic and Industrial Democracy
Book
Volume
44
Issue
2
Page Range
385-409
Article Number
ACU Department
Collections
Relation URI
Source URL
Event URL
Open Access Status
Published as green open access
License
File Access
Controlled
Open
Open