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Study Predicts An Increase Of Workaholics In The Coming Years
The percentage of workaholics in Spain is now 4.6%, and by December 2015 this figure could reach 11.8% of workers. By applying a mathematical model of difference equations, researchers have analysed the possible evolution of this addiction in the coming years under different scenarios of the Spanish economy.
“The study shows the need to implement measures in order to avoid the spread of which is considered one of the social psychopathologies of this century, as well as to promote a corporate culture that allows increasing the capacity of workers to overcome contexts of emotional pain, grief or fear of job loss”, conclude the authors of the study.
The WONT research group from the Universitat Jaume I de Castelló, specialized in psychosocial prevention in the workplace, developed a questionnaire to measure and classify the population according to their level of addiction. “Most of us spend much of our time at work. Some can even become addicted to it, spending an inordinate amount of time and energy to work and doing it in a very intense and compulsive way. Others work hard because they have fun and not because they believe that is what they have to do, they are the “engaged” workers. Through this study we identify the level of addiction and to which extent do employees enjoy working”, explains Mario Líbano, researcher at the Universitat Jaume I. Overall, 1,200 workers of the Valencian region and the Basque Country aged between 16 and 69 years answered this questionnaire.
From the survey results, in order to create the mathematical model, researchers from the Multidisciplinary Institute of Mathematics from the Polytechnic University of Valencia divided the population into three categories: rational workers (with 40 hours or less per week); over workers (over 40 hours) and addicts (determined by their level of compulsion from the answers given in the survey). “Solving the equations of our model, we can predict the prevalence of addiction to working in our country,” said Lucas Jódar, director of the Institute. Alongside Jódar, Paloma Merello, Elena de la Poza and Elvira Alberola have also participated in this part of the project.
In their study, the researchers have also considered four possible economic scenarios: the first one based on the forecasts of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) which predicts a rise of unemployment until 2013; a second optimistic scenario that contemplates the reduction of the unemployment rate to 2010 levels; the third one based on the analysis of FUNCAS, which expects a slow recovery from 2014; and a final more pessimistic one marked by a steady rise in the number of unemployed in Spain till 2015.
“Also, for the construction of the mathematical model we considered other factors that may affect workaholism, such as emotional stress that we have quantified from the rate of marriage dissolutions and socially spread stress”, added researchers.
After applying the model, the study predicts an increase of workaholics in all scenarios, being the highest in the “optimistic scenario” with 11.88%. In the scenario given by the OECD, the rate is 11.72%, 11.65% for FUNCAS scenario, and in the worst scenario of 11.55%. The University of the Basque Country also took part in this study.
Contacts and sources:
Asociación RUVID
