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Employment Insecurity and the Frayed American Dream[Note 1. Gratitude to the Editors for their guidance in revising ...]
Author(s) -
Rubin Beth A.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
sociology compass
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.782
H-Index - 31
ISSN - 1751-9020
DOI - 10.1111/soc4.12200
Subject(s) - argument (complex analysis) , sociology , dream , context (archaeology) , economics , labour economics , psychology , paleontology , biochemistry , chemistry , neuroscience , biology
Abstract This paper reviews literature on employment insecurity and situates objective and subjective employment insecurity in the context of the contemporary economy. I draw on the argument about shifting social contracts to explain both real and perceived pervasive employment insecurity and the frayed American Dream. Employment insecurity derives from the macro‐economic changes that produced the social structure of accumulation identified as flexible accumulation that requires employment insecurity as both a form of labor discipline and profit‐enhancing strategy. This paper argues that contemporary employment insecurity is both objective and subjective and affects how individuals understand their world and their selves. To this latter point, I look at research on generational differences in the experience of employment insecurity.