Which I saw in my own family. My mother was never unemployed and never demanded anything from the state coffers, but she was afraid of the bureaucracy and the inscrutable power that it wielded over citizens' matters.

My former secretary is somewhat spooked by contact with the governmental structures as well.

You've essentially described how employment works, and yes, it can be rather unpleasant.

The requirements were a nightmare. Your employer had to fill out regular forms, the office administering the program had to fill out regular forms, when they made mistakes they'd threaten to take away your housing (and the office frequently made mistakes). If you were employed there were perverse incentives... they would reduce your benefits my MORE than you earned so it only made sense to get a job if the pay would completely disqualify you from the program. It really was torture.

So you think unemployed people are in better mental health than those with jobs?

I guess this is part of the reason why we need these studies: because people's default assumptions are often wildly off.