Job Insecurity, Work-Related Flow, and Financial Anxiety in the Midst of COVID-19 Pandemic and Economic Downturn

Abstract

During the COVID-19 pandemic, every domain of industry has experienced a severe economic downturn with concomitant stress throughout the economy. Employees working in government and private sectors are experiencing different psychological problems. The current study was conducted to investigate the role of work-related flow in the relationship of job insecurity with financial anxiety in the employees working in private and government sectors of Saudi Arabia. The sample comprised 1,195 employees, 886 females, and 309 males. The participants' ages ranged from 25 to 60 years. The Financial Anxiety Scale, Work-Related Flow Inventory, and Qualitative Job Insecurity Measures were found valid and reliable. Structural equation modeling was applied to test the associations. As hypothesized, the results indicated that job insecurity was positively related to financial anxiety, work-related flow was negatively associated with financial anxiety, and work-related flow mediated the relationship between job insecurity and financial anxiety. All these associations were significant regardless of gender, age, marital status, sector of employment, income, self-rated health, and COVID-19 infection status. Further research is needed to understand the impact of job insecurity on financial anxiety in-depth through the paths of work-related flow, especially in the midst of COVID-19.

Mental health of Korean adults before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: a special report of the 2020 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

“…The increase in the prevalence of suicidal planning observed among young adults is comparable to that observed in studies of young adults in the United Kingdom and United States [ 22 , 23 ]. The financial insecurity and job loss experienced by many young adults due to COVID-19 may have contributed to the sustained rise in suicidal behaviors observed in this study [ 24 ]. Individuals in their 40s are the heads of households, and it is possible that the increased prevalence of suicide planning in this age bracket may reflect the burden of having responsibility for the family in economically difficult times.…”

Identifying Psychosocial Risks and Protective Measures for Workers’ Mental Wellbeing at the Time of COVID-19: A Narrative Review

“…Even the perception of job insecurity, which characterizes the job market during COVID-19, may have an impact on employees' financial anxiety. The job insecurity related to COVID was found to be associated with psychological wellbeing through financial stress [91] and is also linked to lower vitality. Interestingly, job insecurity also involved healthcare professionals, who found themselves in a sort of paradox, caught between high workload and financial instability.…”

Lockdown Social Isolation and Lockdown Stress During the COVID-19 Pandemic in China: The Impact of Mindfulness

“…Due to the lockdown social isolation, the unemployment rate has increased sharply, and daily working hours have declined quickly around the world (e.g., Cai et al, 2021 ; Coibion et al, 2020 ; Internal Labour Organization (ILO), 2021 ; Lee et al, 2020 ). Therefore, many employees have led their life in anxiety, distress or depression related to the job and financial insecurity they have experienced ( Ganson et al, 2020 ; Gasparro et al, 2020 ; Nanda, 2020 ; Wang et al, 2020 ; Wilson et al, 2020 ; Basyouni and El Keshky, 2021 ; Cai et al, 2021 ). As a possible means to cope with the stress and anxiety that is entailed by the pandemic lockdown, many researchers focused on mindfulness practice (e.g., Weis et al, 2021 ; Zhu et al, 2021 ; Matta et al, 2022 ).…”