IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v18y2021i14p7372-d591758.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Unemployment Syndrome during COVID-19: A Comparison of Three Population Groups

Author

Listed:
  • Anna Bocchino

    (Nursing University Salus Infirmorum of Cadiz, 11001 Cadiz, Spain)

  • Ester Gilart

    (Lopez Cano Hospital of Cadiz, 11010 Cadiz, Spain)

  • Inmaculada Cabrera Roman

    (Emergency Department Bahia de Cadiz, University of Cadiz, La Janda, 11001 Cadiz, Spain)

  • Isabel Lepiani

    (Nursing University Salus Infirmorum of Cadiz, 11001 Cadiz, Spain)

Abstract

Introduction: Of the serious problems that characterise the current crisis in Spain, the most alarming and revealing is unemployment, which, despite being so common, continues to be quite a negative experience for most people, often with serious negative effects on their biopsychosocial health. The perpetuation of this situation has given rise to a new syndrome of the unemployed. If these effects of economic downsizing are accompanied by the magnitude of the current situation brought about by COVID-19, the results can be devastating for the individuals and families experiencing it. Objective: To compare the symptoms of the unemployed syndrome in three population groups. Method: Three groups were studied: short-term unemployed ( n = 91), long-term unemployed ( n = 150), and those unemployed during the COVID-19 pandemic ( n = 94). Unemployment syndrome was assessed with the Unemployment Syndrome Scale (USS). The three population groups were contacted through web pages, social networks, etc. and answered the instruments online in a single session. Once the responses were obtained, their information was encoded in a database and analysed through the SPSS v. 21 program. Population groups were compared using the ANOVA analysis and the Bonferroni post hoc test. Results: The unemployed individuals who lost their job during the pandemic reported higher scores in the symptoms of the Unemployed Syndrome Scale compared to the long- and short-term unemployed individuals. ANOVA analyses for symptoms of USS were all significant in the different groups considering a significance level of <0.005. Participants who were unemployed for less than one year had lower scores in the USS than the long-term unemployed participants and those unemployed during the COVID-19 pandemic that reported a significantly higher number of symptoms in the USS.

Suggested Citation

  • Anna Bocchino & Ester Gilart & Inmaculada Cabrera Roman & Isabel Lepiani, 2021. "Unemployment Syndrome during COVID-19: A Comparison of Three Population Groups," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(14), pages 1-9, July.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:14:p:7372-:d:591758
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/14/7372/pdf
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/14/7372/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Couch, Kenneth A. & Fairlie, Robert W. & Xu, Huanan, 2020. "Early evidence of the impacts of COVID-19 on minority unemployment," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 192(C).
    2. Kim Usher & Navjot Bhullar & Debra Jackson, 2020. "Life in the pandemic: Social isolation and mental health," Journal of Clinical Nursing, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(15-16), pages 2756-2757, August.
    3. Tiffany Chenneville & Kemesha Gabbidon & Patricia Hanson & Cashea Holyfield, 2020. "The Impact of COVID-19 on HIV Treatment and Research: A Call to Action," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(12), pages 1-14, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Lingli Yu & Ling Yang, 2024. "News media in crisis: a sentiment and emotion analysis of US news articles on unemployment in the COVID-19 pandemic," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 11(1), pages 1-9, December.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Ruta Clair & Maya Gordon & Matthew Kroon & Carolyn Reilly, 2021. "The effects of social isolation on well-being and life satisfaction during pandemic," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 8(1), pages 1-6, December.
    2. Crossley, Thomas F. & Fisher, Paul & Low, Hamish, 2021. "The heterogeneous and regressive consequences of COVID-19: Evidence from high quality panel data," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 193(C).
    3. Koppa, Vijetha & West, Jeremy, 2022. "School reopenings, COVID-19, and employment," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 212(C).
    4. Michelle Symons & Carmem Meira Cunha & Karolien Poels & Heidi Vandebosch & Nathalie Dens & Clara Alida Cutello, 2021. "Physical Activity during the First Lockdown of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Investigating the Reliance on Digital Technologies, Perceived Benefits, Barriers and the Impact of Affect," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(11), pages 1-23, May.
    5. Elizabeth A. Minton, 2022. "Pandemics and consumers' mental well‐being," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 56(1), pages 5-14, March.
    6. Gina Voss & Andreia F. Paiva & Alice Delerue Matos, 2021. "A Study of the Association between the Stringency of Covid-19 Government Measures and Depression in Older Adults across Europe and Israel," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(15), pages 1-12, July.
    7. Kenneth A. Couch & Robert W. Fairlie & Huanan Xu, 2023. "Racial disparities in unemployment during the COVID‐19 pandemic and recovery: The “stubborn,” the “hiccup,” and the “stall”," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 61(3), pages 480-495, July.
    8. Finamor, Lucas & Scott, Dana, 2021. "Labor market trends and unemployment insurance generosity during the pandemic," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 199(C).
    9. Astorquiza-Bustos, Bilver Adrian & Quintero-Peña, Jose Wilmar, 2023. "Who can work from home? A remote working index for an emerging economy," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(10).
    10. Richard Florida & Todd Gabe, 2023. "COVID-19, the New Urban Crisis, and Cities: How COVID-19 Compounds the Influence of Economic Segregation and Inequality on Metropolitan Economic Performance," Economic Development Quarterly, , vol. 37(4), pages 328-348, November.
    11. Resta, Emanuela & Logroscino, Giancarlo & Tafuri, Silvio & Peter, Preethymol & Noviello, Chiara & Costantiello, Alberto & Leogrande, Angelo, 2024. "The ESG Determinants of Mental Health Index Across Italian Regions: A Machine Learning Approach," MPRA Paper 121204, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    12. Wu, Jianxin & Zhan, Xiaoling & Xu, Hui & Ma, Chunbo, 2023. "The economic impacts of COVID-19 and city lockdown: Early evidence from China," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 151-165.
    13. Katherine Lim & Mike Zabek, 2024. "Women’s Labor Force Exits During COVID-19: Differences by Motherhood, Race, and Ethnicity," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 45(3), pages 504-527, September.
    14. Nanath, Krishnadas & Balasubramanian, Sreejith & Shukla, Vinaya & Islam, Nazrul & Kaitheri, Supriya, 2022. "Developing a mental health index using a machine learning approach: Assessing the impact of mobility and lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 178(C).
    15. Yang, Xiaoliang & Zhou, Peng, 2022. "Wealth inequality and social mobility: A simulation-based modelling approach," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 196(C), pages 307-329.
    16. Valentina Rivera & Francisca Castro, 2021. "Between Social Protests and a Global Pandemic: Working Transitions under the Economic Effects of COVID-19," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 10(4), pages 1-21, April.
    17. Guido Matias Cortes & Eliza Forsythe, 2023. "Distributional impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic and the CARES Act," The Journal of Economic Inequality, Springer;Society for the Study of Economic Inequality, vol. 21(2), pages 325-349, June.
    18. Sherry Bell & Brandon Ranuschio & John M. Waldron & Lianne Barnes & Nadia Sheik-Yosef & Esmeralda Villalobos & Janelle Wackens & Renato M. Liboro, 2023. "Pandemic upon Pandemic: Middle-Aged and Older Men Who Have Sex with Men Living with HIV Coping and Thriving during the Peak of COVID-19," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(11), pages 1-16, May.
    19. Zeynep Tekin Babuç, 2022. "A Relational Sociological Analysis on the Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic Lockdown on Syrian Migrants’ Lives in Turkey: The Case of Mersin Province," Journal of International Migration and Integration, Springer, vol. 23(4), pages 1645-1666, December.
    20. Josianne Scerri & Alexei Sammut & Sarah Cilia Vincenti & Paulann Grech & Michael Galea & Christian Scerri & Daniela Calleja Bitar & Stephania Dimech Sant, 2021. "Reaching out for Help: Calls to a Mental Health Helpline Prior to and during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(9), pages 1-10, April.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:14:p:7372-:d:591758. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.