Being jobless is one nightmare no one wants to have, especially if you're someone raising a family and balancing the household budget. But while earning a living is foremost in everyone's minds, a new study published in Occupational and Environmental Medicine shows that, if your job demands too much from you, your mental health suffers more than it would if you were unemployed. The researchers from the Australian National University looked at data from over 7,000 respondents over the course of seven years to figure out how a person's state of employment affects his or her mental health. The results showed that, while unemployed people generally had poorer mental health compared to those with good jobs, they still fared better than people with "poor-quality" jobs. They defined "poor-quality" occupations as those that provide employees low job stability, low control over decision-making, and poor rewards for efforts.
Their research also showed that unemployed people who got good jobs afterward increased their mental health score by 3.3 points on the Mental Health Inventory scale. Meanwhile, those who took on bad jobs dropped 5.6 points below average. If they had stayed jobless, they would have only lost one point.
So if you're unemployed and you're thinking any job is better than none at all, it's time to reevaluate your options and seek employment somewhere that provides you a great working environment. After all, you'll be a more efficient worker if you enjoy what you do, and you can only work toward that promotion if you show enough progress. Having a stressful job will not just wreak havoc on your mental health; it could lead to your physical health and your work quality suffering too.
On the other hand, if you're finding yourself overworked, underpaid, and underappreciated, you might want to consider looking for another job. No job, it seems, is better than a job that only adds to your anxiety levels without giving you any enjoyment.
Thinking of quitting? These articles will help you out:
- To Quit or Not to Quit: How to Know When It's Time to Find Another Job
- Is it time to quit your job?
- Making the Switch: 5 Questions to Ask Yourself Before You Change Careers
- New Beginnings: 5 Tips on Breaking Out of Your Mold
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Want to manage your work-related stress? Check out these articles for information and tips:
- New Study: Your Toxic Work Environment Could Be Killing You
- Burnout Busters: 8 Stress-Relief Techniques for Career Women
- Bye-Bye, Burnout: Schedule Your Downtime for Better Work-Life Balance
- The Stress Files: 10 Most Common Reasons for Fatigue
- Burnout Busters: 3 Tips to Avoid Working Yourself to Exhaustion
- New Study: Working High-Pressure Jobs Increases Chances of Heart Disease
- Managing Moonlighting Madness: 5 Ways to Avoid Sideline Stress
- Job Satisfaction Leads to Better Mental Health + 5 Tips on Turning a Hobby into a Career
(Photo by christianhasdiabetes via Flickr Creative Commons)
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