AI Insight
Researchers developed and validated the Precariat Scale (PRESC), a comprehensive measurement tool designed to assess precarious living and working conditions across three dimensions: sociocultural-economic factors, job insecurity and flexible working, and mental health conditions. The scale was tested on 394 participants and demonstrated strong psychometric properties, including robust internal consistency and construct validity with a stable three-factor structure. This represents the first empirically validated instrument specifically designed to quantitatively measure the multidimensional experiences of the precariat—individuals facing unemployment, underemployment, or temporary employment with significant socioeconomic instability.
Why it matters
The PRESC provides researchers and policymakers with a standardized, validated tool to quantitatively assess and compare precariousness across populations, enabling better tracking of this growing demographic and evidence-based policy interventions. This instrument fills a critical gap in measuring the psychological, occupational, and social impacts of economic precarity on vulnerable populations.
Understand the Science
IntroductionThe precariat is an emerging global demographic comprising unemployed, underemployed, and temporarily employed individuals facing severe socio-economic instability. Despite growing theoretical attention, there is a lack of comprehensive empirical measurement tools. This study addresses this gap by developing and validating the Precariat Scale (PRESC)—a multidimensional instrument designed to assess precarious conditions across three core dimensions: Sociocultural-Economic (SCE), Job Insecurity, Uncertainty and Flexible Working (JIUFW), and Mental Condition (MC).MethodsFollowing a rigorous six-stage scale development protocol, data were collected from 421 participants. Psychometric analyses were conducted on a final sample of 394 participants to evaluate the construct validity, factor structure, and reliability of the scale using polychoric correlation matrices.ResultsPsychometric evaluations supported a robust, stable three-factor model corresponding to the hypothesized dimensions (SCE, JIUFW, and MC). The scale demonstrated strong internal consistency, construct validity, and overall psychometric reliability.DiscussionThe PRESC provides a pioneering, empirically validated framework for operationalizing and measuring the multidimensional realities of the precariat. This tool enables researchers and policymakers to quantitatively assess precariousness and investigate its wider socio-economic and psychological implications.