This study explores the impact of self-employment on health and argues that favorable aspects of autonomy and self-direction notwithstanding, the self-employed are frequently burdened by uncertainty, market fluctuations, and the threat of loss of assets. These impose considerable stress on the self-employed and induce life-styles and behaviors detrimental to health. The analysis is based on survey and medical data for a sample of men residing in urban areas in Israel. The findings revealed higher levels of behavioral and physiological risk factors among the self-employed than among salaried workers, although the opposite was true for visits to the physician and disability days. These patterns were unaltered when social and demographic composition of the groups was taken into account. Implications for the changing organization of work are considered.
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