In Limbo: Exploring Transition to Discouragement

Over the last decade, alongside high unemployment rates, the number of discouraged workers remained high in Turkey despite high growth rates. Moreover, the ratio of men among discouraged workers is relatively high compared with other OECD countries, where discouragement is thought to be related to gender issues. Discouraged worker literature mainly investigates differences in the transition rates from unemployment and discouragement to employment. A few studies, however, explicitly explore who becomes discouraged and why, especially in developing countries. This article aims to address the factors affecting the transition to discouragement in Turkey using pooled cross-sectional data between 2006 and 2011, and considering individual and household characteristics, as well as various local labor market conditions. Our findings indicate that both low qualifications and poor market conditions are associated with higher levels of discouragement.