Factors related to psychological well-being in unskilled manual workers
Objectives The authors characterized the demographic, socioeconomic, and psychosocial work factors associated with performance of unskilled manual work, and then identified the modifiable psychosocial work factors that affected the psychological well-being of these workers. Material and Methods Thi...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Nofer Institute of Occupational Medicine
2021-12-01
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| Series: | International Journal of Occupational Medicine and Environmental Health |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://ijomeh.eu/Factors-related-to-psychological-well-being-in-unskilled-manual-workers,135147,0,2.html |
| Summary: | Objectives
The authors characterized the demographic, socioeconomic, and psychosocial work factors associated with performance of unskilled
manual work, and then identified the modifiable psychosocial work factors that affected the psychological well-being of these workers.
Material and Methods
This study analyzed data from the fifth Korean Working Condition Survey conducted in 2017. The study subjects were 37 081 Korean employees.
The occupational classes investigated were: managers, professionals, and clerks; service and sales workers; and skilled or unskilled manual
workers.
Results
Unskilled manual workers were more likely to be elderly and less educated, to have low income, to work fewer hours weekly, to have
a shorter work duration, to perform temporary or daily jobs, and to report poor subjective health and well-being. Unskilled manual workers were also
more likely to experience psychosocial hazards, such adverse social behaviors, a lack of job satisfaction, a lack of support from managers, and a poor
social climate. However, with statistical adjustment for demographic, socioeconomic, and psychosocial work factors, unskilled manual work was no
longer associated with poor psychological well-being, but psychosocial work factors were associated with poor psychological well-being.
Conclusions
The poor psychological well-being of unskilled manual workers cannot be explained by the intrinsic nature of this type of work. Instead, the poor
psychological well-being of these workers is associated with unfavorable psychosocial work factors, such as a poor employment status, a lack of job
satisfaction, a lack of support from managers, and a bad social climate. These results thus suggest that the modification of psychosocial work factors
may improve the psychological well-being of unskilled manual workers. Int J Occup Med Environ Health. 2021;34(6):789–804 |
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| ISSN: | 1232-1087 1896-494X |