Stress and job insecurity across economic fluctuations: The Finnish case

This study investigates the relationship between stress, job insecurity, and economic conditions among employed individuals in Finland from 1984 to 2018. Drawing on seven waves of the Quality of Working Life Survey (total n = 28,164), we examine how perceived job insecurity—operationalized as the threat of unemployment—relates to stress across different phases of the economic cycle. We explore whether economic downturns intensify stress due to reduced re-employment opportunities or, conversely, normalize job loss and mitigate its psychological impact. Our findings show a consistent positive association between job insecurity and stress across all survey years. However, this relationship does not systematically vary with national unemployment rates, nor is it moderated by individuals’ unemployment history or perceived employability. The results show that Finnish labor market institutions help buffer the effects of economic uncertainty on employee well-being. While economic cycles shape perceptions of job insecurity, their link to stress remains stable.