Chosen instability: how actively selecting a job affects well-being

Abstract

Full-time, regular employment that occurs at an employer’s place of business has decreased over time, and nonstandard work has increased correspondingly to fill the gap. Nonstandard work arrangements can offer both positive and negative consequences for workers. On the positive side, nonstandard work schedules can sometimes accommodate irregular family, secondary work, social, or caregiving commitments. On the negative side, nonstandard work schedules can interfere with workers’ home and family life and limit their autonomy over their own life and pans. This thesis expands upon Schneider and Harknett’s (2019) study, which found that schedule instability leads to negative well-being for food and retail workers, by exploring whether a different orientation towards one’s profession might have a different effect on well-being. Specifically, might the negative impact of schedule instability be lessened if someone actively chooses their unstable career because of a strong desire to do that work? The literature review examines three potential explanations for why someone who actively chooses their career might have better well-being in a precarious job: 1) the autonomy associated with the choice might improve their well-being; 2) the cultural respect for the profession might bolster worker well-being; and 3) the belief that success will be granted long-term might boost persistence and well-being in the short-term. A detailed analysis of online forums for Uber drivers and actors offers support for the hypothesis that the choice of career has an effect on well-being. Specifically, the negative impact schedule instability typically has on well-being seems to be lessened in the case of actors who have greater autonomy as a result of actively choosing their vocation.