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Abstract

Underemployment is a multidimensional construct that captures various suboptimal work statuses. Although recent economic depressions and insecure job markets in Korea have increased underemployment, no appropriate scale exists to measure underemployment in a Korean context. Therefore, the aim of this study was to translate the Subjective Underemployment Scales (SUS) into Korean and validate the Korean SUS (K-SUS) with a sample of 427 Korean employees. We found that a bifactor model fit the data best, suggesting a different internal structure from the English version. Scores from the K-SUS were also invariant across gender, age, income, and employment status. In addition, we found evidence for construct validity by relating scores from the K-SUS to similar constructs and indicators of well-being. Findings from the current study help describe Korean employees’ experiences of subjective underemployment and suggest how psychologists, employers, and policy makers can address structural and psychological issues related to underemployment.

Keywords

Underemployment Scale Korea temporary work irregular work contingent work psychology of working 불완전 취업 척도 한국 비정규직 임시직 계약직 일의 심리학

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Context and Validation of the Korean Subjective Underemployment Scale (K-SUS): 한국의 불완전 취업 실태 및 주관적인 불완전 취업 척도 타당화

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