Unemployment is being "rebranded" by the government as a psychological disorder, a new study claims.

Those that do not exhibit a "positive" outlook must undergo "reprogramming" or face having their benefits cut, says the Wellcome Trust-backed report.

This can be "humiliating" for job seekers and does not help them find suitable work, the researchers say.

But the Department for Work and Pensions said there was no evidence to back up the "highly misleading" claims.

The paper, published in the Medical Humanities journal, says benefit claimants are being forced to take part in positive thinking courses in an effort to change their personalities.

They are bombarded with motivational text messages - such as "success is the only option", "we're getting there" and "smile at life" - and have to take part in "pointless" team-building exercises such as building towers out of paper clips, it adds.

New benefit claimants are interviewed to find out whether they have a "psychological resistance" to work, with those deemed "less mentally fit" given more intensive coaching.

And unpaid work placements are increasingly judged on psychological results, such as improved motivation and confidence, rather than whether they have led to a job.

The report's co-author, social scientist Lynne Friedli, described such programmes as "Orwellian".

"Claimants' 'attitude to work' is becoming a basis for deciding who is entitled to social security - it is no longer what you must do to get a job, but how you have to think and feel.

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-33060794