engleski

The psychological impact of the hidden economy working

The hidden economy working of unemployed people is usually seen as a fraudulent activity of people who are working for financial gain while claiming social welfare benefits. However, for many of them such undeclared working is the only possible choice, an alternative substituting for some functions of regular employment. On the manifest level, undeclared working can provide some income and cushion the effects of financial hardship. But, can it also substitute for some latent functions of paid employment? According to Jahoda's theory, the latent function include the time structure, regular shared experience, information about personal identity, a link with the collective purpose, and enforced activity. This paper explores whether the hidden economy working reduces the degree of deprivation of these functions during unemployment. The data were collected on a representative sample of unemployed persons (N = 1138). The questionnaire contained questions trying to assess the amount of undeclared working, as well as an ad hoc developed scale aiming to assess the extent of their latent deprivation. The results revealed that unemployed persons who are often engaged in hidden working exhibit less latent function deprivation.

unemployment, hidden economy working, latent functions of employment

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