Published papers
2025
L’épreuve du chômage : baromètre de la stigmatisation des « chômeurs » et du chômage
Charly Marie, Emma de Araujo, Morgane Hoffmann, David Bourguignon
Cahiers de la LCD, 2025
Les personnes sans emploi portent un stigmate et peuvent vivre, anticiper et internaliser la stigmatisation. En retour, elles peuvent déployer un ensemble de stratégies afin d’y faire face. Malgré ses conséquences négatives pour la santé et l’insertion, l’étendue de ce stigmate et des façons de le négocier reste largement inconnue. En conséquence, nous réalisons une enquête de victimation afin de quantifier la fréquence et l’intensité de la stigmatisation des personnes au chômage, ainsi que les stratégies que les individus mettent en place pour y faire face, via un échantillon représentatif des personnes demandeuses d’emploi en catégorie A de France travail (n = 2 098). Nous montrons qu’entre une personne demandeuse d’emploi sur deux et une sur trois rapporte vivre et anticiper être stigmatisé⸱e ; entre une sur cinq et une sur six internalise la stigmatisation ; entre une sur trois et une sur six évite les personnes et les contextes potentiellement stigmatisants. Cette stigmatisation est plus élevée chez les personnes plus jeunes et avec un niveau de formation plus élevé, mais ne varie pas selon le genre ou la durée de chômage. Ainsi, la stigmatisation du chômage ne semble pas apprise mais découler du seul stéréotype négatif de « chômeur. » Ce travail oriente vers la réduction de la stigmatisation des personnes sans emploi, afin d’améliorer leur santé, leur recours au droit et leur insertion.
Les réponses anonymes à l’enquête et le code R sont disponibles sur la page Open Science Framework de l’étude : https://osf.io/4e6mg/. Les données démographiques appartiennent à France Travail et ne sont donc pas rendues publiques.
Keywords: chômage; stigmatisation; victimation
Simplified and shortened French adaptation of a self-esteem contingency measure
Martin Robion, Sophie Berjot, Manon Balty, Céline Stinus, Kwamigan Ahondo, Charly Marie, David Bourguignon
Frontiers in Psychology, 2025
This study aims to validate a shortened and adapted French version of a self-esteem contingency measure specifically designed to evaluate how self-esteem depends on two fundamental psychological needs: competence and affiliation. To ensure a clear understanding and broaden the tool’s validity across diverse populations, it was tested among three groups: students, job seekers, and employees. Four samples participated in the survey: students (N = 221, N = 507), job seekers (N = 270), and employees (N = 328). Participants completed the adapted self-esteem contingency scale along with other selected scales to assess convergent and discriminant validity. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory analyses (CFA, ESEM, Bifactor-CFA, and Bifactor-ESEM) were conducted to explore the scale’s structure. The EFA revealed a two-dimensional structure, while the confirmatory analyses suggested a bifactorial model composed of one global factor and three specific factors: contingency regarding competence, self-criticism, and contingency regarding relationships. The bifactorial model demonstrated good internal consistency across all groups and satisfactory temporal stability. Correlation analyses with other constructs supported the convergent and discriminant validity of the scale. Overall, the shortened and adapted French version of the self-esteem contingency measure is a valid and reliable instrument. It assesses global self-esteem contingency while accounting for the specificities related to the needs for competence and affiliation. This dual focus enhances the scale’s applicability in both research and intervention contexts.
The original contributions presented in the study are included in the article/Supplementary material, further inquiries can be directed to the corresponding author.
Keywords: self-esteem contingency; measurement; adaptation; validation; French
What the Press Reveals About ‘The Unemployed’: A Lexicometric Analysis of 12,996 Articles From French Written Newspapers From 2005 to 2022
Charly Marie, David Bourguignon
European Journal of Social Psychology, 2025
Unemployed people face a stigmatizing representation leading to adverse outcomes. Its origin, content, evolution and transmission remain understudied. We use a lexicometric method to examine how ‘the unemployed’ are represented in 12,996 French press articles from 2005 to 2022. First, unemployed people represent 0.03% of all articles published during the study period. Second, we identify six mostly disembodied frames that reflect activation policies and almost exclusively individualize the cause of unemployment: unemployed people as statistics and economic data, political debates on unemployment, implementation of unemployment policies, local and organizational support, personal stories and realities of unemployment and collective actions. Only the frame of personal stories correlates with unemployment rate, suggesting increased humanization during economic crises. Third, when depicted, unemployed individuals are portrayed as persevering and willing poor men in need of guidance and support, who adhere to a strong social norm to work and take personal responsibility for their situation.
The research material is the property of Europresse and cannot be shared. The results of the lexicometric analyses and the R code to reproduce the figures and analyses are available from https://osf.io/2qcfw/.
Keywords: framing; lexicometry; social representation; stereotype; stigma; unemployed
“You’re a Nobody When You’re Unemployed”: Exploring the Content of Unemployed People’s Stereotype
Charly Marie, Pierre Bouchat, David Bourguignon
Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology, 2025
Unemployed people bear a stigma that builds on the stereotype of ‘the unemployed’ and is associated with many adverse outcomes. No study has used the dimensions and facets of the latest integrated stereotype framework to describe their stereotype and compare it with other groups. In Study 1 among university students (n = 241), we show that unemployed people are rated lower than employed people on the horizontal and the vertical dimensions of their stereotypes, as well as on the facets of ability, assertiveness, morality and friendliness. We show that unemployed people are also rated the lowest when compared to a high-high occupation (firefighters) and a low-low occupation (railroad workers). In Study 2, we replicate these findings with university students (n = 193) and show that unemployed people are also blatantly dehumanised when compared to the same targets. In Study 3, we show that vocational integration workers (n = 123) also rate unemployed people lower than employed people on both dimensions and facets, but not on morality. Overall, we conclude that unemployed people have a highly destructive stereotype that is lacking in every dimension and facet, and that they are overly despised.
The data is available on the Open Science Framework, along with the R code to replicate the analyses, tables and figures from the three studies: https://osf.io/8skqj/.
Keywords: dehumanisation; stereotype content; stigma; unemployed; vocational integration workers
Working papers
French Validation of Pinel’s Stigma Consciousness Questionnaire Among Unemployed People: Links with Well-Being, Motivation, Objective Job Search Behavior, and Access to Employment
Charly Marie, Charlotte Rauscher, Morgane Hoffmann, David Bourguignon
Unemployment can have profound psychological and health consequences, which can arise from the anticipation of stigmatization faced by unemployed individuals. We studied whether unemployed people’s anticipation of being stigmatized, operationalized as stigma consciousness, was associated with core psychological processes, objective job search behavior and access to employment. We first translated the Stigma consciousness questionnaire (Pinel, 1999) into French and adapted it to our population. We then sent a survey to a representative sample of unemployed people (N = 30,000; nrespondents = 2,055) and linked responses to administrative databases of the French public employment service. The scale had good psychometric properties. Controlling for confounders, stigma consciousness negatively correlated with well-being, reported health, and life satisfaction, and positively correlated with social and identified-regulated motivation to (re)work. Three months post-survey, stigma consciousness predicted increased job search efforts among individuals unemployed for at least one year. However, this increased job search did not lead to increased re-employment. This could potentially exacerbate their stigma consciousness, further worsening core psychological processes in a detrimental cycle. Findings were consistent with an individual mobility strategy and challenged the view that stigma systematically leads to avoidance behavior.
Anonymized survey responses, research materials and R scripts are available. Demographic data, job search behavior, and access to employment are proprietary to the French public employment service and therefore cannot be shared. The study protocol and hypotheses were preregistered.
Keywords: Unemployment, Stigma consciousness, Health, Self-esteem, Job search behavior
Draft not yet available.
A Victimization Study of Unemployment Stigma: Profiles, Coping, and Self-Efficacy
Charly Marie, Emma de Araujo, Morgane Hoffmann, David Bourguignon
Unemployed people face significant stigmatization, which leads them to experience, anticipate, and internalize their stigma and to use a range of strategies to cope with it. Despite its importance, the extent of this stigma remains largely unknown. Therefore, we conduct a victimization study and quantify the extent of unemployment stigma and its relationship to self-efficacy using survey data from a representative sample of 2,098 jobseekers. Study 1a finds high levels of acute, daily, and anticipated stigmatization and low levels of stigma internalization, with avoidance being a common behavioral strategy. Study 1b uses k-means clustering and uncovers three distinct profiles of stigma exposure that vary by age, family situation, and receipt of social benefits. Study 1c shows that these profiles predict differences in self-efficacy, independent of key demographic factors. The findings highlight the vulnerability of younger, single, welfare recipients who are most at risk for stigma and low self-efficacy.
Keywords: Unemployment, stigma, coping, self-efficacy, discrimination, jobseekers
An Adaptive Experiment to Boost Online Skill Signaling and Visibility
Morgane Hoffmann, Bertille Picard, Charly Marie, Guillaume Bied
Digital matching platforms promise to reduce frictions on the labor market by providing low-cost information on available positions and candidates. As such, they may form a welcome addition to the toolbox available to Public Employment Services to bridge labor supply and demand. However, there are certain challenges associated with their adoption. For instance, vulnerable populations may face difficulties in utilizing digital tools effectively. In this study, we evaluate the impact of a communication campaign by email designed to encourage the use of an online matching platform maintained by the French Public Employment Service, Pôle emploi. We designed several email templates that combined information, support, or motivational content to encourage jobseekers to engage with their profiles on the platform. In order to discover email effectiveness, we implement an adaptive experiment (contextual bandit) where the goal is to use past jobseekers’ take-up responses and characteristics to determine email allocation in the future, reducing gradually the allocation of less promising templates. Additionally, we built an optimal personalization allocation strategy based on collected data and test its effectiveness. Emails had a positive impact on the usage of the platform, as measured by a wide range of outcomes. However, attempts at learning a personalized emailing strategy did not manage to significantly improve on a random allocation of email templates.
The pre-registration can be found at the American Economic Association’s registry for randomized controlled trials. The study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of the Paris School of Economics under the reference 2022 - 019.
Keywords: Online Job Platforms, Contextual bandits, Behavioral science
From Hidden Skills to Opportunities : The Impact of Job Portals use on Labor Market Outcomes
Morgane Hoffmann, Bertille Picard, Guillaume Bied, Charly Marie
As job search and recruitment processes increasingly shift online, job platforms have the potential to reduce the costs of connecting employers with job seekers. However, evidence of the impact of such online tools on employment remains scarce. We study a job platform maintained by the French Employment Service allowing job seekers to create a profile showcasing their skills to recruiters. We conduct a large-scale randomized experiment involving 252,000 job seekers, a third of whom received incentive e-mails encouraging them to create their profile on the institution’s website. Leveraging rich administrative data and weblogs of platform usage, we examine the intervention’s impact across various stages, from profile actions to job search and ultimately employment outcomes. We identify a significant 0.3 percentage point increase in the job-finding rate for contracts lasting more than 3 months. The magnitude of these effects should be understood in light of the intervention’s limited uptake and its near-zero cost. We introduce a theoretical framework that explores the trade-off faced by job seekers between engaging solely in a standard autonomous search channel or investing in a profile search channel, which enables them to receive ``low-cost” contacts with recruiters. The model predicts that job seekers who decide to invest in their online profile should raise their reservation wage while reducing their autonomous search efforts. Empirical results support this prediction, showing a simultaneous increase in platform usage and a decline in applications. Additionally, we document heterogeneity in the intervention’s impact with employment effects concentrated in sectors with high tightness ratios, among highly qualified individuals, and the longer-term unemployed.
This project was pre-registered on the [AEA’s RCT Trial Registry] (https://www.socialscienceregistry.org/trials/10085). It was approved by the Paris School of Economics’ Institutional Review Board under reference 2022 - 019.
Keywords: Labor Economics Policies, Digital Economics, Online Job Platforms, Informational Frictions
Perspectives et Connaissances des Mondes Professionnels : Un Cours de Carrière Développant les Compétences de Hasard Planifié
Boris Vallée, Eva Louvet, Séverine Bagot-Renault, Charly Marie, Jean-Félix Hamel
Selon la Théorie du Hasard Planifié, les événements imprévus dans les trajectoires professionnelles sont autant d’opportunités de carrières. Les individus gagneraient donc à être réceptifs aux événements imprévus, sinon même à les générer. Dans cette continuité, les conseillers d’insertion et d’orientation pourraient accompagner les individus à développer des compétences de hasard planifié (curiosité, persévérance, flexibilité, optimisme et prise de risque) leur permettant de reconnaître les possibilités offertes par le hasard, d’adopter des comportements propices à en engendrer davantage, et de transformer ces évènements imprévus en opportunités de carrières. Nous créons, déployons et évaluons les effets d’un cours de carrière favorisant le développement de ces compétences de hasard planifié auprès de 214 étudiant.e.s en licence 2 de psychologie de l’Université de XXX. L’évaluation pré-post (Janvier à Avril-Mai) montre une amélioration des cinq compétences de hasard planifié, et suggère un rapport plus clair et optimiste quant à leurs futures opportunités académiques et professionnelles. Une analyse en cluster montre que les effets de l’intervention sont d’autant plus positifs que le niveau de compétences de hasard planifié pré-intervention est faible.
Keywords: Décision/indécision; Trajectoire de carrière; Population étudiante; Théorie du Hasard Planifié; Opportunités; Rencontres; Réseau professionnel
Draft not yet available.
French translation and validation of the Job search self-efficacy scale (Saks & al., 2015)
Charlotte Rauscher, Charly Marie, Morgane Hoffmann
Abstract coming soon :)
Keywords: Job search, Self-efficacy, Unemployment
Draft not yet available.
Book chapters
“Les chômeurs veulent juste profiter du système” : Quand les préjugés tiennent lieu d’argument [“The unemployed just want to take advantage of the system.” When bias replaces argument]
in Petit guide de survie aux discussions des repas de famille [A short survival guide for family meal discussions]
Charly Marie, Charlotte Rauscher, David Bourguignon
2025
Le chômage est un objet complexe et « les chômeurs » sont la cible de nombreuses idées reçues. Ils et elles ne voudraient pas travailler, auraient la belle vie, frauderaient et devraient être remis·e·s dans le rang en réduisant leurs allocations chômage. Ce chapitre vous propose d’approfondir le sujet pour distinguer les opinions des faits.
[Unemployment is a complex issue, and ‘the unemployed’ are often subject to many preconceived notions. They are accused of being unwilling to work, of enjoying a comfortable lifestyle at the expense of others, and of cheating the system. Consequently, some argue that they should be made to comply by reducing their unemployment benefits. This chapter examines the subject in more detail to distinguish opinions from facts.]
Le chômage et la stigmatisation à l’oeuvre [Unemployment and stigma in action]
in Psychologie de la discrimination et des préjugés: De la théorie à la pratique [Psychology of discrimination and prejudice: From theory to practice]
David Bourguignon, Selma Seghouat, Charly Marie, Ginette Herman
2022
Les effets délétères de la privation d’emploi sur la santé mentale sont largement étayés dans la littérature scientifique. En psychologie, la plupart des travaux ont expliqué ces effets au travers d’une perspective individuelle, laissant dans l’ombre la dimension intergroupe. Pourtant, de la situation de chômage émergent deux groupes, celui des travailleur⸱euses et celui des chômeur⸱euses. Alors que le premier est en adéquation avec une norme sociale valorisée « celle de travailler », le second, par déviance à cette norme, est la cible de préjugés véhiculés par la société. Confronté à la dévalorisation, le groupe des chômeurs et des chômeuses développe une identité sociale négative nuisant à la santé mentale et l’insertion sociale et professionnelle. Cette configuration est la voie principale conduisant au processus de stigmatisation. Quelles sont les stratégies de défense de soi que les chômeur·euses mettent en oeuvre pour le contrer ? Les travaux que nous avons réalisés montrent que, contrairement à de nombreux groupes qui parviennent à protéger leur santé mentale en s’identifiant davantage à leur groupe d’appartenance (par ex., les femmes), les personnes sans emploi ne bénéficient pas des effets positifs d’une telle stratégie, que du contraire. Toutefois, lorsque les chômeur⸱euses contestent le bien-fondé de la dévalorisation qui s’exerce à l’égard de leur groupe, leur identité acquiert une valeur protectrice. Nous développerons cette dimension dans le chapitre, qui se conclut par une réflexion sur les liens entre la stigmatisation, les stratégies de défense de soi et les questions d’intégration au sein du marché de l’emploi.
[The detrimental impact of unemployment on mental health is well-documented in the scientific literature. However, most psychological studies have focused on the individual perspective, neglecting the intergroup dimension. Yet, unemployment creates two groups: workers and “the unemployed.” While the former conforms to the valued social norm of working, the latter deviates from this norm and becomes the target of societal prejudice. Faced with this devaluation, unemployed people develop a negative social identity, which is detrimental to mental health, as well as to social and professional integration. This is the main pathway leading to stigmatisation. What self-defence strategies do unemployed people use to counter this? Unlike many groups who protect their mental health by identifying more strongly with their group (e.g. women), our research show that unemployed people do not benefit from the positive effects of such a strategy. However, when they challenge the devaluation of their group, their identity acquires a protective value. This dimension will be developed in the chapter, which concludes with a reflection on the links between stigmatisation, self-defence strategies, and issues of integration into the labour market.] Keywords: Chômage, Stigmatisation, Coping
Social and Emotional Skills, Stigma, and Job Search Behaviors: A Representative Cross-Sectional Study of Unemployed People in France
Emma de Araujo, Charly Marie (both first authors), Morgane Hoffmann, David Bourguignon, Grégoire Borst
Unemployment is associated with adverse outcomes, including lower self-esteem, poorer family relationships, worse physical and mental health, and an increased risk of depression, anxiety, cardiovascular disease and mortality. Understanding the psychological factors that influence job search behaviors is therefore essential for developing effective interventions to support job seekers throughout the recruitment process. In this study, based on a representative sample of unemployed individuals (N=2,098), we simultaneously examine both established (self-efficacy, locus of control) and underexplored psychological factors (mindset, self-control, problem-solving and reasoning [fluid intelligence], experienced stigma, anticipated stigma, and internalized stigma) related to job search behaviors. After controlling for other psychological factors and demographics, self-control, internal locus of control, self-efficacy, and acute stigma are associated with higher preparatory job search behaviors. Internal locus of control, self-efficacy, and acute stigma are associated with more active job search behaviors while problem-solving and reasoning (fluid intelligence) are associated with fewer. Additionally, only internalized stigma is linked to a higher number of applications submitted via a formal source, the job search website of the French public employment service and greater use of this formal source for applications. We discuss the implications of these novel insights for informing interventions, public policy, and future research. Hypotheses and methods have been preregistered. The R script and the available data will be published at the OSF repository. The study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of the Paris Cité University under the reference 00012023-140.
Keywords: Job search; Social and emotional skills; Stigma; Unemployment
Draft not yet available.