Life without a job

The Netherlands has long had a large number of people who are unemployed or incapacitated for work. This study explores the consequences of not working for the individual. To do this, it addresses the following questions:

• Do the unemployed, the disabled and those in work differ from each other in terms of work ethic and the importance they attach to certain aspects of work?
• Do they differ in their willingness to accept unattractive work, and in the intensity with which and the way in which they look for work?
• Do non-workers have a different (more negative) perception of their financial position, social contacts, social participation, time use, health status and well-being than those in work?

The study also investigates which characteristics of the unemployed correlate with their opinions, jobseeking behaviour and perceptions of their own lives. Particular attention is devoted to differences according to sex and length of unemployment. The study also explores whether the consequences of not working have changed over time: how much did attitudes, behaviour and perception of life situation change in the period 1974-1995? How can these changes be interpreted against the background of economic, political and socio-cultural developments in the Netherlands?