Vocational Interventions for Unemployed: Effects on Work Participation and Mental Distress. A Systematic Review

Abstract

Based on our review, we conclude that there is weak evidence to support the use of vocational interventions to improve work participation and limited evidence to reduce mental distress for the unemployed. We recommend further development and evaluation of return to work intervention strategies for unemployed individuals.

Unemployment and initiation of psychotropic medication: a case-crossover study of 2 348 552 Norwegian employees

“…A systematic review from 2010 concluded that the evidence supporting the use of vocational interventions to improve re-employment and reduce mental distress were weak 40. However, evidence from the USA41 and Finland42 indicate that psychological interventions targeting the unemployed effectively improved mental health, and were positively associated with re-employment.…”

Effectiveness of a return-to-work program for workers without an employment contract, sick-listed due to common mental disorders

“…Up to now, little attention has been paid to the development and evaluation of RTW interventions for sicklisted workers without an employment contract, such as temporary agency workers, those with an expired fixed-term contract, and unemployed workers (15). This is an important concern as these workers seem to have a more vulnerable position in the labor market.…”

The health effects of employment

“…In Western societies, it is generally difficult to ‘survive’ as unemployed without participating in measures that range from short courses aimed at promoting job seeking skills, to long-term occupational training with integrated periods of work and to state subsidised job creation schemes. Studies concerning ‘indirect employment effects’ of the ALMP measures, or the health effects of ‘interrupted unemployment’, are excluded from the review of van der Noordt et al 1 The current body of such research is scarce,9 10 and rather than allowing unequivocal conclusions, the evidence gives some reason to recommend carefully designed prospective studies that make use of the natural experiments provided by various ALMP measures.…”