This book explores the lived experience of unemployment from a critical social psychological perspective. It connects the condition of unemployment to governance structures and wider societal issues, such as the labor market tendencies of precarity and enterprise culture. Based on qualitative data collected in Denmark and America, the book gives voice to unemployed people to critically discuss both the intended and unintended consequences of active labor market measures, as well as the fre...

The Handbook on Unemployment and Society explores how labor market institutions, policy regimes, and societal norms shape the experiences of unemployed people across various cultural contexts. It highlights how unemployment experiences are not usually driven by individual factors, but rather by broader structural forces.Contributing authors demonstrate how the disconnection from secure and dignified employment can severely undermine well-being, challenge a person’s sense o...

This book offers a comprehensive exploration of the ongoing digital transformation of public employment services (PES) – the most radical remaking of the welfare state in a generation.As PES shift from analogue to fully digitised services, this volume bridges the gap between technology, policy and frontline service provision. It provides a well-rounded analysis of the practical opportunities and challenges posed by digital welfare, reconnecting and reconciling technical possibiliti...