title: Employment insecurity and mental health during the economic recession: An analysis of the young adult labour force in Italy.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  A growing body of scientific literature highlights the negative consequences of employment insecurity on several life domains. This study focuses on the young adult labour force in Italy, investigating the relationship between employment insecurity and mental health and whether this has changed after years of economic downturn. It enhances understanding by addressing differences in mental health according to several employment characteristics; and by exploring the role of respondents' economic situation and educational level.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data from a large-scale, nationally representative health survey are used to estimate the relationship between employment insecurity and the Mental Health Inventory (MHI), by means of multiple linear regressions.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The study demonstrates that employment insecurity is associated with poorer mental health. Moreover, neither temporary workers nor unemployed individuals are a homogeneous group. Previous job experience is important in differentiating the mental health risks of unemployed individuals; and the effects on mental health vary according to occupational status and to the amount of time spent in a condition of insecurity. Further, the experience of financial difficulties partly explains the relationship between employment insecurity and mental health; and different mental health outcomes depend on respondents' educational level. Lastly, the risks of reporting poorer mental health were higher in 2013 than in 2005.
authors.affiliation: ESRC Centre for Population Change, University of St Andrews, UK. Electronic address: ff20@st-andrews.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Francesca
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Fiori
authors.affiliation: ISTAT - Italian National Institute of Statistics, Italy. Electronic address: rinesi@istat.it.
authors.forename: Francesca
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Rinesi
authors.affiliation: ISTAT - Italian National Institute of Statistics, Italy. Electronic address: daspizzi@istat.it.
authors.forename: Daniele
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Spizzichino
authors.affiliation: ISTAT - Italian National Institute of Statistics, Italy. Electronic address: digiorgio@istat.it.
authors.forename: Ginevra
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Di Giorgio
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D057172:Economic Recession; D004651:Employment / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012307:Risk Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014478:Unemployment / Q000523:psychology; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Economic recession; Employment insecurity; Italy; Mental health; Young adult labour force