ORIGINAL PAPER
Factors related to psychological well-being in unskilled manual workers
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1
Catholic University of Daegu, Gyeongsan, South Korea (Department of Occupational Health)
 
2
University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Ulsan University Hospital, Ulsan, South Korea (Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine)
 
 
Online publication date: 2021-06-07
 
 
Corresponding author
Yangho Kim   

University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Ulsan University Hospital, Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 290-3 Cheonha-dong, Dong-gu, Ulsan 44033, South Korea
 
 
Int J Occup Med Environ Health. 2021;34(6):789-804
 
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ABSTRACT
Objectives: The authors characterized the demographic, socioeconomic, and psychosocial work factors associated with performance of unskilled manual work, and then identified the modifiable psychosocial work factors that affected the psychological well-being of these workers. Material and Methods: This study analyzed data from the fifth Korean Working Condition Survey conducted in 2017. The study subjects were 37 081 Korean employees. The occupational classes investigated were: managers, professionals, and clerks; service and sales workers; and skilled or unskilled manual workers. Results: Unskilled manual workers were more likely to be elderly and less educated, to have low income, to work fewer hours weekly, to have a shorter work duration, to perform temporary or daily jobs, and to report poor subjective health and well-being. Unskilled manual workers were also more likely to experience psychosocial hazards, such adverse social behaviors, a lack of job satisfaction, a lack of support from managers, and a poor social climate. However, with statistical adjustment for demographic, socioeconomic, and psychosocial work factors, unskilled manual work was no longer associated with poor psychological well-being, but psychosocial work factors were associated with poor psychological well-being. Conclusions: The poor psychological well-being of unskilled manual workers cannot be explained by the intrinsic nature of this type of work. Instead, the poor psychological well-being of these workers is associated with unfavorable psychosocial work factors, such as a poor employment status, a lack of job satisfaction, a lack of support from managers, and a bad social climate. These results thus suggest that the modification of psychosocial work factors may improve the psychological well-being of unskilled manual workers. Int J Occup Med Environ Health. 2021;34(6):789–804
eISSN:1896-494X
ISSN:1232-1087
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