Research
Take part in our annual research survey into mental health and freelancing.
Take Part in 2024 SurveyTake part in our annual research survey into mental health and freelancing.
Take Part in 2024 SurveyEvery year, we run a research survey into freelancing and mental health. We've been doing this since 2019, and has formed the basis for much of our work, and has helped support over 250,000 via the Leapers project.
Your participation helps us understand the challenges freelancers face, and impact of different factors upon mental health.
Take part in our 2024 survey today.
Take Part in 2024 SurveyMore Control is still the top reason for moving into self-employment54% of those who were new to self-employment this year cited it as the primary driver for moving to this way of working. In contrast ‘control over where I work’ has declined to only 13%, perhaps reflecting employment now being more flexible around remote and distributed working habits.
61% of those who were new to self-employment reported their mental health had improved during the year they moved to self-employment 85% of those new to freelancing said it has a positive benefit on their mental health.
54% of people didn’t give a significant amount of thought about how self-employment might affect their mental health before taking the leap This often leads to a ‘shock to the system’, such as feelings of isolation or worries about irregularity of income.
80% of our group said feelings of a lack of confidence have caused them stress or anxiety during the year This suggests that ideas like “imposter syndrome” are something we all experience and part of human nature, rather than a “condition” or failure.
63% of the group don’t feel they have adequate support for their mental health at work The same number don’t know where they’d look for support or resources for their mental health at work, suggesting there’s still a long way to go to create a well-supported ecosystem for the self-employed.
There’s an increasing number of ‘side hustlers’ or people who are both employed and self-employed at the same time They seem to be in poorer mental health: 56% of the ‘dual-employed’ were prevented from working at some point due to poor mental health, compared to 39% in only self-employment.
75% of the self-employed took less than 28 days off in the last 12 months This is less than the mandatory legal right for employees in the UK. 40% of those who took less than 21 days off reported poor mental health having a negative impact on their work, compared to 28% who took more holiday.
41% of our cohort said that at some point during 2022, they were unable to work, due to stress, anxiety or poor mental health This number drops to 30% for those who say they have an adequate support network in place.
87% are concerned about increased cost of living and only 11% of our group feel supported by the government as as a small business owner 55% of the group considered leaving self-employment during 2022.
77% of the cohort are feeling positive about 2023, and 68% feel it will be a better year for their mental health - This suggests that despite the challenges 2022 threw at us, there’s still excitement, motivation and positivity towards self-employment as great way of working for this group.
Browse the reports from previous years data - all available on Leapers.co