Methods

We are going to conduct a quantitative cross-sectional study of the effects of job insecurity on the psychological well-being of workers at a Russian factory located in the Tver’ region. The factory has been experiencing economic difficulties and has recently declared its intentions to undergo downsizing. The downsizing news were first announced in the beginning of October, 2011. We are going to conduct a survey among 70 manual workers and 70 non-manual workers of the factory using an anonymous written questionnaire. The survey will consist of two parts: measures of the current psychological well-being of workers and their perceived job insecurity.

Job insecurity questions:

1. [Quantitative] How do you assess the probability of continuing this job in the near future? (1 = highly improbable; 6 = highly probable)

2. [Qualitative]

1. How do you assess the probability of your working conditions remaining the same or improving? (1 = highly improbable; 6 = highly probable)

2. How do you assess the probability of receiving promotion in the near future? (1 = highly improbable; 6 = highly probable)

3. How do you assess the probability of regular wage payments in the near future? (1 = highly improbable; 6 = highly probable)

For the second question the responses (scores) for each survey will be averaged over the three sub-questions giving the measure of this worker’s perceived qualitative job insecurity.

Workers’ psychological well-being will be measured with the help of the Ryff Scales of Psychological Well-Being (Seifert, 2005). The respondent has to rate each of the following statements on a scale of 1 (strong disagreement) to 6 (strong agreement). A high score in each category indicates good psychological conditions for the given aspect. A low score indicates the opposite.

1. Autonomy: I have confidence in my opinions, even if they are contrary to the general consensus.

2. Environmental Mastery: In general, I feel I am in charge of the situation in which I live.

3. Personal Growth: I think it is important to have new experiences that challenge how you think about yourself and the world.

4. Positive Relations with others: Other people would describe me as a giving person, willing to share my time with others.

5. Purpose in Life: Some people wander aimlessly through life, but I am not one of them.

6. Self-Acceptance: I like most aspects of my personality.

For each completed questionnaire, the responses will be averaged. The resulting average represents the measure of psychological well-being for the given worker.

Then, using regression analysis, we will look for any significant correlations in the following relationships:

1. Psychological well-being of all workers vs. qualitative job insecurity

2. Psychological well-being of all workers vs. quantitative job insecurity

3. Manual workers’ psychological well-being vs. quantitative job insecurity

4. Non-manual workers’ psychological well-being vs. quantitative job insecurity

5. Manual workers’ psychological well-being vs. qualitative job insecurity

Finally, we will compare which correlations, if any, are stronger: (1) or (2), (3) or (4), (3) or (5). For that purpose, we will calculate Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients for each relationship and compare the coefficients within the listed pairs.