Are you curious what burned out employees have in common? Here we are going to review research that looked into some contributing factors.
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Suffering from burnout is on the rise and is anyone surprised…?
With the rise of technology and automation tools, employees are feeling more pressure to perform and showcase their value. Corporations continue to seek high profits and want to do more with less. Threats of layoffs and economic unpredictability continue to place stress on many of us.
With all these factors at play, it is not surprising more individuals are experiencing burnout.
A team of social science professionals in Spain reviewed over 152 research articles related to burnout. In their review, they summarized similarities and contributing factors to burnout. Additionally, they reviewed ways burnout can be prevented and what employers could do to reverse this trend.
The researchers classified burnout as:
“Occupational phenomenon that results from chronic stress in a work place”
Overall, burnout occurs when stress levels develop progressively which can cause chronic health conditions. The damage could be mental, emotional, or physical.
The researchers noted this is not a personal problem but rather a consequence of stressful work activity.
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4 Levels of Burnout
- Mild – headaches, back pain, some fatigue, and less operative
- Moderate – insomnia, attention deficit can appear, detachment, irritability, cynicism, boredom, progressive loss of motivation, frustration, incompetence, and negative self-esteem
- Severe – increased absence, task aversion, depersonalization, potential drug or alcohol abuse
- Extreme – extreme isolation, aggressive, chronic depression, and potential thoughts of suicide
7 Factors Linked to Burnout
1) Organizational Factors
- Types of tasks and the expectations associated
- How tasks are organized
- Relationships between colleagues, clients, and leadership
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2) Work Overload
- Workload matters in both quantitative and qualitative situations
- Workload is deemed excessive when it requires sustained effort
- Workload overload can be the beginning trigger of burnout
- Excessive workload can result in one distancing themselves from tasks
3) Emotional Labor
The researchers discussed emotional labor as the process where one needs to self regulate their emotions to fit the organization. When one experiences emotional labor, it increases workload, which can trigger or further burnout probability. Research shows this varies largely on profession with some being more impacted than others.
Emotional labor could look like:
- Controlling or hiding negative (anger, irritation) emotions
- Hiding fear when one is expected to be calm
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4) Lack of Autonomy
- Lack of freedom when making work decisions
- Higher rates of professional fulfillment when employee can make decisions
- Lack of authority over their work
5) Role Conflict
- Confusion about role expectations
- Lack of information to complete task at hand
- Incongruent behavior from organization – saying one thing but expecting another
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6) Lack of Perceived Social Support
- Lack of support from co-workers or supervisors
- Internal conflict between co-workers
- Individual support system
- Social support appears to drastically reduce burnout likelihood
7) Poor Working Hours
- Shift work, night work, long working hours, and/or larger amount of overtime are triggers for burnout
- Physical symptoms such as sleep disorders, heart problems, job dissatisfaction, and increased risk of accidents are associated with poor working hours
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Final Thoughts
Ultimately, burnout does not have to be inevitable. It is something that can be prevented and treated during development. However, treatment doesn’t usually happen until chronic symptoms start to appear.
Interventions largely place focus on the individual but the researchers suggested more focus should be placed on organizations because burnout largely starts with work overload and role ambiguity.
As one study pointed out, organizations should review the wellbeing of their workers as a key performance indicator. This was suggested because burned out employees may alter their performance to meet demands. For instance, a burned out employee may ‘check the boxes’ but be short and rude with customers. Burned out employees can impact the overall function of a business and therefore was suggested to be a key performance indicator.
The researchers also noted burnout is likely rising because the pressure does not end. New technology, mobile devices, and lack of boundaries is preventing the necessary break from work. The lack of disconnection does not allow for full recovery.
Study Referenced:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8834764/#B98-ijerph-19-01780
Photography Credit:
Anthony Tran, Jason Goodman, Desola Lanre Ologun, Simon Abrams, Elisa Ventur, Brooke Cagle