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Beta Study Unconditional Basic Income reduces stress
More and more people are suffering from stress and stress disorders. Work density and entitlement increase. The competitive situation in the labor market is causing more and more people to get sick. Since the beginning of this year, Finland has been conducting a basic income study. Around 2,000 unemployed receive EUR 560 per month instead of the regular unemployment benefit. In addition, the recipients may work without the money being withdrawn. And nobody checks what the money is spent on. One thing the study already shows: The stress level drops.
Basic income should give security
The basic idea is not that someone out of the 560 euros survives the month, but that those affected have the security that this socket is regularly in their account. The pilot project will show whether such a tax-free allowance can solve the problem of existential insecurity. In the Finnish unemployment benefit system, people working part-time sometimes get less money than those who only receive unemployment benefits.
Who gets used to pondering, often feels stressed even at small "obstacles" and overwhelmed. A basic income seems to take on stress. (Image: StockPhotoPro / fotolia.com) Motivation to find a job
The unconditional basic income should also motivate the recipients to work if they can. A positive impact of the basic income can already be seen: the participants suffer much less stress than in the time they got unemployment benefits.
The fear is that you will not get any more money if, for whatever reason, you reject a job. Affected people report that their mental health has improved since then.
Basic income instead of Hartz IV?
There are many good arguments for unconditional basic income - and many good arguments against it. However, the situation in Finland can very well be transferred to people who have to live on Hartz IV funds. Whoever has to reckon with sanctions that push him under the existential minima, if he refuses (any) a job, is always in uncertainty.
Stress makes you sick
Such stress has been shown to cause a whole range of sequelae. These include mental disorders such as depression or anxiety disorders and various psychosomatic disorders.
Insomnia, lack of concentration, an unrealistic assessment of risks, inappropriate reactions, also substance abuse and addictive behavior are promoted by stress.
Think slowly
Psychology has long known that "slow thinking", ie working through and reflecting on situations, is the precondition for making appropriate decisions. This is even more true the more complicated the situation is. For the unemployed in particular, such rational thinking is indispensable. Instead of frantically picking one straw after another and getting stuck in meaningless projects, they should examine as objectively as possible: What can I do, what is my potential, and how can I put it into practice?
Rational analysis instead of panic
Biologically, stress is a physical reaction to danger - the body's own alarm systems are in full swing when our evolutionary program suggests the choice between flight and struggle.
This makes sense when we are directly at risk: when members of a street gang threaten us, we decide in a fraction of a second whether we can knock them out or run away.
For our life planning, however, such reactions to immediate danger are counterproductive and can be fatal: For example, if we are looking for a new apartment, then we better not take the first one, so that we have "a roof over our heads"..
Hartz-IV, to get into work?
If we are looking for a job, then we should assess, with the help of others, how we can use our skills, or develop skills that we do not have yet through further education. Both only work if we have basic security. In other words, the increased stress experienced by the unemployed in the Hartz system means that the goal of returning to decent work is a long way off. (Dr. Utz Anhalt)