A high number (55-59%) of people with multiple sclerosis (MS) lose their job due to complex interactions between disease related factors, the working environment, job demands and personal factors....Show moreA high number (55-59%) of people with multiple sclerosis (MS) lose their job due to complex interactions between disease related factors, the working environment, job demands and personal factors. Identifying factors that will help provide a sustainable and healthy working life is essential. Our aim was to examine the association between cognitive fatigue and work functioning. The study included 225 individuals with relapsing-remitting MS in paid employment (>12 hours a week) (75.6 % female, median age: 42.5 years, median EDSS: 2.0). Five multiple regression analyses were conducted while accounting for known correlates (age, gender, education, duration of disease, MSrelated disability, job type) to examine the relationship between both subjective and objective measures of cognitive fatigue and work functioning in employees with MS. Secondly, a correlation analysis was conducted to examine the relationship between objective and subjective cognitive fatigue. Subjective cognitive fatigue is obtained by self-report questionnaires (Visual Analogue Scale (VAS)/Modified Fatigue Impact Scale (MFIS)) and objective cognitive fatigue is obtained by using a neuropsychological test, the Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test (PASAT). The outcome variables are (1) current work ability compared to lifetime's best measured by the Work Ability Index (WAI) and (2) work functioning measured by the 4 subscales of the Work Role Functioning Questionnaire-2 (WRFQ-2). No association was found between objective cognitive fatigue and work functioning. An explanation could be that objective and subjective measures are often only weakly correlated with each other. A lower subjective cognitive fatigue (MFIS: β = -.18, p = .041; VAS: β = -.39, p = < .001) was associated with better work ability. No association was found between subjective cognitive fatigue and the 4 subscales of the WRFQ-2 measuring work functioning. Lastly, no association was found between objective cognitive fatigue and subjective cognitive fatigue. In conclusion, subjective cognitive fatigue was associated with self-reported work ability in persons with relapsing-remitting MS with mild disability, while objective cognitive fatigue was not associated with self-reported work functioning. Further research should focus on objective measures of work functioning and other objective measures of cognitive fatigue.Show less
This thesis explores one of the solutions to the problem of a declining labour force Japan is faced with: increasing women’s employment, also after marriage and/or childbirth. In Japan, women...Show moreThis thesis explores one of the solutions to the problem of a declining labour force Japan is faced with: increasing women’s employment, also after marriage and/or childbirth. In Japan, women generally occupy a significantly lower position than men in the workplace. Through in-depth interviews with Japanese women, I have found answers to the following questions: What do Japanese women think of this inequality? Are they demotivated by a lack of prospects? Additionally, I explore what they consider important in a job, taking both content and conditions of employment into account. I argue that when the elements women consider important in work are determined, future laws and regulations aimed at increasing women’s employment rate can take these elements into account. Consequently, such laws will be more efficient in drawing more women to the labour force.Show less
