25 Research suggests that some of the decline in prime-age labor force participation relates to some individuals’ reduced ability or desire to work, in some cases resulting directly from the ongoing decline in job opportunities. There are many reasons why some prime-age men may be less willing or able to work.
One possibility is that the unusually long spells of nonemployment associated with the Great Recession may have eroded job skills and informal employment networks. Another possibility that is increasingly in focus is that physical disabilities, as well as sharp increases in opioid use, have increasingly inhibited some individuals from participating in the labor force.