Osäkerhet, flexibilitet, hälsa och stress - En empirisk prövning av Guy Standings klassbegrepp

Objective: In order to put the class schema of popular sociologist Guy Standing to empirical test, we sought out to define this schema in a large survey database of 15.937 respondents of Swedish people called SLOSH, provided by the Stress Research Institute of Stockholm University. We named the schema standian class. We wanted to investigate the specific theory presented by Standing that the precariat suffers from anomie and alienation, the defined groups of the standian class schema were therefore analysed on outcomes of self-rated health and a stress scale previously used by researchers at the stress research institute using linear regression models. In completing models age, income, gender, country of birth and highest level of education were controlled for. Main results: No association between the standian class position and outcomes on self-rated health or the stress scale where established, neither in the single nor multiple regression models. Conclusion: The concept of commodification of labour is used to analyse the results. The lack of association may be explained by the varieties of capitalism theory, as developed by Hall and Soscik, or welfare regimes theory developed by Esping-Andersen. The Swedish market economy differ from the anglosaxian liberal market economy context where Standings theory where formed. Further research on precariousness and its implications on health, in different types of welfare states is needed.