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Friends in Low Places: Gender, Unemployment and Sociability

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  • Helen Russell

    (The Economic and Social Research Institute 4 Burlington Road Dublin 4 IRELAND)

Abstract

The recent debates about the underclass and social exclusion have focused attention on the social networks of the unemployed. However the research in this area has largely failed to take on board the gender dimension of sociability. Using survey data this paper compares the patterns of sociability of unemployed men and women. It is argued that women's more home-centred social activity and their stronger neighbourhood and kinship links means that their social networks are less vulnerable to unemployment than men's. It is found that women's previous pattern of labour market participation is critical in building up a social network which is resistant to unemployment. However a social network that is external to the labour market may also have some negative implications. An absence of friends in employment could lead to a detachment from the world of work. The networks of unemployed men and women are found to feature a much higher than normal concentration of unemployed members and are deficient in employment contacts. Contrary to underclass predictions this does not lead to a reduction in employment commitment but it does have repercussions for the availability of support and access to job information.

Suggested Citation

  • Helen Russell, 1999. "Friends in Low Places: Gender, Unemployment and Sociability," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 13(2), pages 205-224, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:woemps:v:13:y:1999:i:2:p:205-224
    DOI: 10.1177/09500179922117917
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    Cited by:

    1. Tony Beatton & Benno Torgler, 2018. "Volunteering and life or financial shocks: does income and wealth matter?," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 50(19), pages 2190-2209, April.
    2. D. Cooper & W. D. McCausland & I. Theodossiou, 2008. "Unemployed, uneducated and sick: the effects of socio‐economic status on health duration in the European Union," Journal of the Royal Statistical Society Series A, Royal Statistical Society, vol. 171(4), pages 939-952, October.
    3. Matthew Cole, 2008. "Sociology contra government? The contest for the meaning of unemployment in UK policy debates," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 22(1), pages 27-43, March.
    4. Gush, Karon & Laurie, Heather & Scott, James, 2015. "Job loss and social capital: the role of family, friends and wider support networks," ISER Working Paper Series 2015-07, Institute for Social and Economic Research.
    5. Jan Eckhard, 2022. "Gender Differences in the Social Consequences of Unemployment: How Job Loss Affects the Risk of Becoming Socially Isolated," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 36(1), pages 3-20, February.
    6. Krug, Gerhard & Prechsl, Sebastian, 2022. "Do changes in network structure explain why unemployment damages health? Evidence from German panel data," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 307(C).

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