Is Any Job Better Than No Job? Utilising Jahoda’s Latent Deprivation Theory to Reconceptualise Underemployment

Beck, Vanessa; Warren, Tracey; Lyonette, Clare

Abstract

Underemployment is a widely discussed but complex concept. This article progresses discussions and provides a new sociological conceptualisation. It builds on a classic theory of unemployment, Jahoda et al.’s ‘latent deprivation theory’ (LDT), that identified five ‘latent functions’ provided by jobs, besides a wage: time structure, social relations, sense of purpose/achievement, personal identity and regular activity. LDT was ground-breaking in illuminating previously hidden injuries of joblessness. This article proposes that LDT can be similarly ground-breaking for reconceptualising underemployment: it demonstrates conceptually the multiple ways in which the mere existence of a job is insufficient in protecting individuals from socially and psychologically negative impacts associated with unemployment. A sociology of underemployment can help better understand complex, shifting and precarious work and expose inherent forms of suffering and injustice.

Citation

Beck, V., Warren, T., & Lyonette, C. (2025). Is Any Job Better Than No Job? Utilising Jahoda’s Latent Deprivation Theory to Reconceptualise Underemployment. Work, Employment and Society, 39(2), 404-425. https://doi.org/10.1177/09500170241254794

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Apr 22, 2024
• Online Publication Date: Jun 25, 2024
• Publication Date: 2025-04
• Deposit Date: Apr 26, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Apr 26, 2024
• Journal: Work, Employment and Society
• Print ISSN: 0950-0170
• Electronic ISSN: 1469-8722
• Publisher: SAGE Publications
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 39
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 404-425
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/09500170241254794
• Keywords: latent deprivation; Jahoda; job quality; unemployment; underemployment; precarious work; skills; sociology of work and employment; time; wages
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/34109060
• Publisher URL: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/09500170241254794