Relationships among burnout, job dissatisfaction, psychosocial work conditions and minor mental disorders of precarious employment in Taiwan

Abstract

Background: Precarious employment is a major determinant of mental health outcomes. The COVID-19 pandemic and development of digital economic platforms have enhanced the ratio of precarious employment relationship. The aim of this study was to explore the relationships among burnout, job dissatisfaction, psychosocial work conditions and minor mental disorders of precarious employment. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted, using the questionnaire from a national survey of employees in 2013. Minor mental disorder was measured using the five-item brief symptom rating scale (BSRS-5). 1909 males and 1499 females, with a total of 3408 non-standard employees aged 20 to 65, including short-term and temporary precarious employment, have been analyzed. Also obtained were participants’ sex, age, type of industry, status of shift work, job dissatisfaction, burnout as well as psychosocial work conditions. Results: The prevalence of minor mental disorders among precarious work condition in man and women were 16.08% and 19.35%, respectively. When we adjusted age and status of shift work, associations between minor mental disorders and female, job dissatisfaction, increased scores in burnout, and high psychological demand of work was noticed. When we further categorized by sex, it was found that job dissatisfaction and increased scores in burnout were significantly related with an increased risk for minor mental disorders in both male and female workers. The odds of minor mental disorders was significantly related with an increased scores in psychological demand of work among female precarious workers. Conclusions: This research study provides directions for future researches.

Keywords

• job dissatisfaction
• minor mental disorders
• precarious employment
• psychosocial work conditions