Work aversion
Encyclopedia
Work aversion is the state of being turned off by working or being employed, or the extreme preference of leisure as opposed to work. It can be attributed to laziness
, boredom
, or burnout
, most underachievers suffer from some work aversion.
Those attempting to treat work aversion as an illness may use psychotherapy
, counseling, medication
, or some more unusual forms of treatment. Depending on the cause, lengths of treatment and success rates may vary.
In the case where the person has not worked for a while due to a workplace injury, work-hardening can be used to build strength. The person works for a brief period of time in the first week, such as two hours per day and increases the amount of work each week until full-time hours are reached.
The idea that work itself has intrinsic value or is an indicator of health or goodness can be traced to the Protestant Reformation
.
Laziness
Laziness is a disinclination to activity or exertion despite having the ability to do so. It is often used as a pejorative; related terms for a person seen to be lazy include couch potato, slacker, and bludger....
, boredom
Boredom
Boredom is an emotional state experienced when an individual is without any activity or is not interested in their surroundings. The first recorded use of the word boredom is in the novel Bleak House by Charles Dickens, written in 1852, in which it appears six times, although the expression to be a...
, or burnout
Burnout (psychology)
Burnout is a psychological term for the experience of long-term exhaustion and diminished interest. Research indicates general practitioners have the highest proportion of burnout cases; according to a recent Dutch study in Psychological Reports, no less than 40% of these experienced high levels of...
, most underachievers suffer from some work aversion.
Causes
Work aversion usually occurs in persons who have previously been employed, and can have a variety of causes. These include:- BoredomBoredomBoredom is an emotional state experienced when an individual is without any activity or is not interested in their surroundings. The first recorded use of the word boredom is in the novel Bleak House by Charles Dickens, written in 1852, in which it appears six times, although the expression to be a...
with work. Holding a boring job early in life can lead to the impression later that all work is boring. - DepressionDepression (mood)Depression is a state of low mood and aversion to activity that can affect a person's thoughts, behaviour, feelings and physical well-being. Depressed people may feel sad, anxious, empty, hopeless, helpless, worthless, guilty, irritable, or restless...
: A person who is suffering from clinical depressionClinical depressionMajor depressive disorder is a mental disorder characterized by an all-encompassing low mood accompanied by low self-esteem, and by loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities...
, dysthymia, griefGriefGrief is a multi-faceted response to loss, particularly to the loss of someone or something to which a bond was formed. Although conventionally focused on the emotional response to loss, it also has physical, cognitive, behavioral, social, and philosophical dimensions...
, or other similar disorders may lack the motivation to work. - Obsessive-compulsive disorderObsessive-compulsive disorderObsessive–compulsive disorder is an anxiety disorder characterized by intrusive thoughts that produce uneasiness, apprehension, fear, or worry, by repetitive behaviors aimed at reducing the associated anxiety, or by a combination of such obsessions and compulsions...
: Due to neurological dysfunction, the person becomes preoccupied with anxiety-based obsessions, and performs compulsive behaviors in order to cope with their anxiety. They are therefore unable to redirect their attention toward a job or employment search. - Panic disorderPanic disorderPanic disorder is an anxiety disorder characterized by recurring severe panic attacks. It may also include significant behavioral change lasting at least a month and of ongoing worry about the implications or concern about having other attacks. The latter are called anticipatory attacks...
: For some, merely finding oneself in a work environment can trigger a panic attackPanic attackPanic attacks are periods of intense fear or apprehension that are of sudden onset and of relatively brief duration. Panic attacks usually begin abruptly, reach a peak within 10 minutes, and subside over the next several hours...
. After such an occurrence, many are reluctant to seek further employment. - Post-traumatic stress disorderPost-traumatic stress disorderPosttraumaticstress disorder is a severe anxiety disorder that can develop after exposure to any event that results in psychological trauma. This event may involve the threat of death to oneself or to someone else, or to one's own or someone else's physical, sexual, or psychological integrity,...
: The person has suffered from a traumatic experience at an earlier job. This may be a physical injuryInjury-By cause:*Traumatic injury, a body wound or shock produced by sudden physical injury, as from violence or accident*Other injuries from external physical causes, such as radiation injury, burn injury or frostbite*Injury from infection...
suffered on the job, a scary event that occurred while at work (such as a robberyRobberyRobbery is the crime of taking or attempting to take something of value by force or threat of force or by putting the victim in fear. At common law, robbery is defined as taking the property of another, with the intent to permanently deprive the person of that property, by means of force or fear....
of the place of employment), severe harassmentHarassmentHarassment covers a wide range of behaviors of an offensive nature. It is commonly understood as behaviour intended to disturb or upset, and it is characteristically repetitive. In the legal sense, it is intentional behaviour which is found threatening or disturbing...
or bullying from fellow employees, or abuse from one's boss or employer. - Abrupt terminationTermination of employment-Involuntary termination:Involuntary termination is the employee's departure at the hands of the employer. There are two basic types of involuntary termination, known often as being "fired" and "laid off." To be fired, as opposed to being laid off, is generally thought of to be the employee's...
: A former employee who was firedFiringDismissal is the termination of employment by an employer against the will of the employee. Though such a decision can be made by an employer for a variety of reasons, ranging from an economic downturn to performance-related problems on the part of the employee, being fired has a strong stigma in...
or laid offLayoffLayoff , also called redundancy in the UK, is the temporary suspension or permanent termination of employment of an employee or a group of employees for business reasons, such as when certain positions are no longer necessary or when a business slow-down occurs...
from an earlier job may be fearful of seeking future employment on the basis that such rejection may recur again. - PhobiaPhobiaA phobia is a type of anxiety disorder, usually defined as a persistent fear of an object or situation in which the sufferer commits to great lengths in avoiding, typically disproportional to the actual danger posed, often being recognized as irrational...
: Some persons are simply phobic of the workplace.
Complications
Since the term work aversion only applies to one with the need to earn income, complications will inevitably arise from lacking the money the subject needs from employment. These may include:- Loss of assets, as one lives off his/her savings and liquidates other assets, including mortgaging his/her home
- Loss of money in a get-rich-quick schemeGet-rich-quick schemeA get-rich-quick scheme is a plan to acquire high rates of return for a small investment. The term "get rich quick" has been used to describe shady investments since at least the early 1900s....
the subject enters out of desperation - Gambling problems
- DebtDebtA debt is an obligation owed by one party to a second party, the creditor; usually this refers to assets granted by the creditor to the debtor, but the term can also be used metaphorically to cover moral obligations and other interactions not based on economic value.A debt is created when a...
and credit problems - Self-neglect. This may include malnourishment, since the subject may be unable to afford a sufficient diet, or neglect of one's personal appearance or hygiene in ways that may cost the subject money or may make giving a good impression to a potential employer more difficult.
- Neglect of dependents, such as spouse and children, who one is expected to support. Work aversion is responsible for many cases of divorceDivorceDivorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
and broken families. - Neglect of personal belongings, such as one's home, car, or other possessions requiring maintenance, or loss of services that require payment of a monthly bill, such as utilities, phone service, insurance.
- Strained relations with family and friends, especially those who are forced to support the unemployed subject, or those who otherwise expect the subject to have money or items of value.
- Strained marriage, when financial problems hurt marriage
- Reduced socialization, especially in cases where the subject is in need of money to support such interaction.
- Denial of citizenshipCitizenshipCitizenship is the state of being a citizen of a particular social, political, national, or human resource community. Citizenship status, under social contract theory, carries with it both rights and responsibilities...
, since immigrants to new countries are expected to work and not be a burden to taxpayers of the new country - HomelessnessHomelessnessHomelessness describes the condition of people without a regular dwelling. People who are homeless are unable or unwilling to acquire and maintain regular, safe, and adequate housing, or lack "fixed, regular, and adequate night-time residence." The legal definition of "homeless" varies from country...
, in most severe cases. A 1987 public opinion survey in Nashville found that 45% of respondents believed homelessness is caused by work aversion.
Treatment
The mental health community does not recognize work aversion as an illness or disease and therefore no medically recognized treatments exist.Those attempting to treat work aversion as an illness may use psychotherapy
Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy is a general term referring to any form of therapeutic interaction or treatment contracted between a trained professional and a client or patient; family, couple or group...
, counseling, medication
Medication
A pharmaceutical drug, also referred to as medicine, medication or medicament, can be loosely defined as any chemical substance intended for use in the medical diagnosis, cure, treatment, or prevention of disease.- Classification :...
, or some more unusual forms of treatment. Depending on the cause, lengths of treatment and success rates may vary.
In the case where the person has not worked for a while due to a workplace injury, work-hardening can be used to build strength. The person works for a brief period of time in the first week, such as two hours per day and increases the amount of work each week until full-time hours are reached.
Criticism
Work aversion is not a recognized psychological disorder in the DSM-IV.The idea that work itself has intrinsic value or is an indicator of health or goodness can be traced to the Protestant Reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
.
See also
- Anti-workAnti-workThe anti-work ethic states that labor tends to cause unhappiness, and is increasingly challenged by work performed by machines. Therefore, the quantity of labor ought to be lessened...
- DrapetomaniaDrapetomaniaDrapetomania was a supposed mental illness described by American physician Samuel A. Cartwright in 1851 that caused black slaves to flee captivity. Today, drapetomania is considered an example of pseudoscience, and part of the edifice of scientific racism...
- Disability fraudDisability fraudDisability fraud is the receipt of payment intended for the disabled from a government agency or private insurance company by one who should not be receiving them or the receipt of a higher amount than one who is entitled to them should be receiving. There are various acts that may constitute...
- ErgophobiaErgophobiaErgophobia also called Ergasiophobia, is an abnormal and persistent fear of work, finding work or functioning, ergophobia may also be a subset of either social phobia or performance anxiety. Sufferers of ergophobia experience undue anxiety about the workplace environment even though they realize...
- Work-leisure dichotomyWork-leisure dichotomyThe work–leisure dichotomy is the conceptual separation of activities in a society. Some societies assume, for the large part of the population which is in a condition of employee, a separation between "work" and "leisure". This idea was invented with the industrial revolution...
Further reading
- The Abolition of Work and Other Myths, Neala Schleuning, (Summer, 1995), which was (supposed to be) a response to...
- The Abolition of WorkThe Abolition of Work"The Abolition of Work" is an essay written by Bob Black in 1985. The essay was part of Black's first book, an anthology of essays entitled The Abolition of Work and Other Essays published by Loompanics Unlimited. It is an exposition of Black's "type 3 anarchism" – a blend of post-Situationist...
, by Bob BlackBob BlackBob Black is an American anarchist. He is the author of The Abolition of Work and Other Essays, Beneath the Underground, Friendly Fire, Anarchy After Leftism, and numerous political essays.-Writing:Some of his work from the early 1980s includes...
.