To What Extent Does Exposure to Psychosocial Risks Impact Workers' Mental Health? Evidence from France

Aurélie Gaillard (), Roméo Fontaine () and Damien Sauze ()
Additional contact information
Aurélie Gaillard: UP - Université de Poitiers = University of Poitiers
Roméo Fontaine: INED - Institut national d'études démographiques
Damien Sauze: TRIANGLE - Triangle : action, discours, pensée politique et économique - ENS de Lyon - École normale supérieure de Lyon - Université de Lyon - UL2 - Université Lumière - Lyon 2 - IEP Lyon - Sciences Po Lyon - Institut d'études politiques de Lyon - Université de Lyon - UJM - Université Jean Monnet - Saint-Étienne - UJM EPE - Université Jean Monnet (EPSCPE) - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, UL2 UFR SEG - Université Lumière - Lyon 2 - UFR de Sciences économiques et de gestion - UL2 - Université Lumière - Lyon 2

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Abstract: Background: Mental health disorders is increasingly the result of adverse working conditions. In several European countries, ever more workers are reporting work-related mental health problems and stressful working conditions. This paper aims to assess the impact of exposure to psychosocial risks (PSRs) at work on French workers' mental health. Methods: The research is based on the French "Health and employment history" survey and focuses on workers employed in the private sector in 2010. Exposure to PSR is measured using a job-demands index, a decision-latitude index and their combination as a job-strain index. We use symptoms of major depressive episodes (MDEs) as a measure of workers' mental health. Results: Results from a simple Probit Model show that individuals in demanding jobs have a significantly higher probability of suffering from MDEs than individuals less exposed to the demands of work. We find similar results for decision latitude with a smaller effect on mental health. These results are confirmed when we control for potential endogeneity of PSRs through an instrumentation strategy. Indeed, among workers, the probability of suffering from MDEs increases with job-demands and decision-latitude exposure, from less than 2% among the bottom decile on the exposure scale to more than 8% among the top decile. Conclusion: This study confirms with econometric methods that exposure to PSR is a crucial phenomenon for companies to consider in order to preserve workers' health and especially mental health that play an important role for the maintenance of employment and the return to employment.

Keywords: Major depressive episodes; Job strain; Psychosocial risks factors; Occupational health; Mental health (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
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Published in Journal de gestion et d'économie de la santé, 2026, 2025/3, pp.57-93. ⟨10.54695/jdds.043.3.0057⟩

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hal:journl:halshs-05644704

DOI: 10.54695/jdds.043.3.0057

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