Moderators and mediators on the mental health of young participants in active labour market programmes: Evidence from East and West Germany

Abstract

This article addresses the mental health of young people taking part in an active labour market programme (ALMP). The subject of the paper follows the demand for research on the ‘permanent impermanence’ identified as a situation characterized by shifting in between different labour market training programmes, unemployment and odd jobs. The research on which the article draws was an evaluation study of an active labour market programme in Germany, known as JUMP. The article uses data derived from a participants’ survey and addresses the following questions: How can the mechanism of ALMP and mental health be described? What affects young people within an ALMP? Are there any differences according to the density of the surrounding labour market? Previous research has explored the impact of unemployment on mental health. This article investigates the possible impact of ALMP, referring to the complex relationship between the density of the labour market and young people's mental health. It then applies data derived from the JUMP participants’ survey to explore the influence on young people. The impact of the density of the surrounding labour market is addressed by separating the available data into East and West German participants. The article finally compares the research findings from young participants in an ALMP with previous research on unemployed young people and concludes with differences between East and West German young people.