Life’s dignity within and beyond the workplace: Results from a national sample of US workers

While social relationships are essential to dignity, empirical research has yet to explore how the core qualities of these relations associate with a dignified life. Given widespread alienation among contemporary workers, we suspect that a life’s dignity may derive equally, if not more, from relations beyond the workplace. Drawing on 2021 Gallup survey data from the United States ( N = 551), this study captures an increased range of processes spanning work and non-work relations (respect, recognition, authenticity, closeness and/or support). Findings show that work and non-work relations are both strongly linked to perceptions of living a dignified life, though recognition and authenticity are somewhat harder to come by than respect, closeness or emotional support. Non-work relations matter significantly more for dignity in women’s lives, while work relations matter more for men’s dignity. However, a lack of differences by college degree status underscores how agency and boundary work are vital to constructing a life’s dignity.