Characterizing The Youth Predisposition Toward Employment in The Gig Economy in Kenya.

This article explores the predisposition of Kenyan youth to employment in the gig economy focusing on socio-economic, educational, and institutional factors that influence participation. The objectives of the study include: to evaluate the socioeconomic factors that promote sustainable gig employment among Kenyan youth, analyze the existing policy and institutional enablers supporting the sustainable gig economy in Kenya and establish the challenges facing the sustainable gig economy in Kenya. The paper shall use evolutionary game theory, risk return trade off theory and social exchange theory. The study employed a cross sectional research design with quantitative and qualitative approach using a structured google form questionnaire administered to 350 youths engaged in various forms of gig work across sampled urban centres in Kenya. Data were analyzed using correlation analysis and multi regression analysis to determine the relationships and assess the predictive effect of gig economy on youth predisposition at 0.05 significance level. Results revealed that there was a positive correlation between enablers of sustainable gig employment among Kenyan youth (r = .90), challenges facing a sustainable gig economy in Kenya (r = .87) and existing policy and institutional enablers supporting the sustainable gig economy in Kenya (r = .93). The study found that the majority of the challenges faced by Kenya youth in the gig economy include: income instability, regulatory and policy gaps, difficult to form unions amongst other challenges. The study also indicated that with favorable existing policies and institutional enablers, the chances of the gig economy to thrive amongst Kenya youth are very high. It recommends that the age of youth participating in the gig economy be reviewed as currently the ages of people being considered as youth is between 18 to 35 years as opposed to the recommended age of youth being from 15 to 24 years old globally.

Gig Economy, evolutionary game theory, risk trade off theory, social exchange theory, employment dynamics.

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