Cross-sectional Analyses of Self-employed & Directly Employed Workers’ Job-specific Well-being In Creative and Corporate Workplaces

Abstract

The current mixed-methods study explored differences in Job Specific Well-being (JSWB) amongst self-employed and directly-employed workers in creative and corporate workplaces. A descriptive, cross-sectional design with open ended questions, employing purposive sampling, was used. A self-report, mixed method, digital questionnaire was used for data collection and respondents (N=230) were sourced globally. Analyses showed a significant difference in JSWB for overall self-employed compared with overall directly-employed workers. An effect of supervisory responsibility on JSWB was observed among groups of directly-employed workers. For self-employed workers, no significant effect of supervisory responsibility was seen for levels of JSWB. Additionally for self-employed workers, no significant difference in JSWB was seen based on “necessity” or “opportunity” self-employment. Generally, findings showed that both self-employed and directly employed workers in the current sample were dissatisfied with daily work. Findings were mixed, and results prompt important considerations for existing research.