Burnout, Work Engagement and Performance

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Burnout, Work Engagement and Performance
Evangelia Demerouti, PhD Athens, May 2004
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Outline

• Burnout background
• Measurement of Burnout
• Research Findings
• Engagement
• Burnout Interventions

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Burnout discovery

• Since 1974 (Freudenberger)
• Definition Syndrome of emotional exhaustion,
  depersonalisation, and reduced personal
  accomplishment that can occur among people who do
  people work of some kind (Maslach, 1982)
• Main cause Emotional demands posed by clients

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Burnout reasons for interest

• Negative consequences for employees (lack of
  interest in work existential doubts)
• Consequences for clients (low quality of service)
• High costs for organizations
• Its excessive spread (around 20 of the
  employees)
• Important social problem but still unclear
  concept

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Causes of burnout

• Work pressure
• Emotional demands
• Role problems
• Work-family conflict
• Social support
• Feedback
• Participation in decision making
  

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Consequences of burnout

• Individual level
• Depression
• Psychosomatic complaints
• Infections
• Work-related attitudes
• Job satisfaction
• Organizational commitment
• Turnover intention
• Organizational level
• Absenteeism
• Turnover

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Burnout and Personality

• Neuroticism
• Low extraversion
• Low hardiness
• External locus of control
• Low self-esteem
• Type A personality
• Passive coping style

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Depression vs. Burnout (clinical)

• Depression
• Depressive mood
• Unhappiness, displeasure
• Weight loss
• Fearfulness
• Sleeping problems (wake up early)
• Guilt feelings
• Suicide thoughts
• Indecisiveness
• Attribution of the problem sickness
• General
• Low vitality

• Burnout
• Anger, aggression
• Low pleasure
• No weight symptoms
• No fearfulness
• Sleeping problems (difficulty to fall asleep)
• Guilt feelings
• No suicide thoughts
• Indecisiveness (complaint)
• Attribution of the problem work
• Work-related
• Moderate vitality

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Occupation-independent conceptualisation of
burnout

• Related to traditional work stressors
• Work stressors better predictors than working
  with people (Schaufeli Enzmann, 1998)
• Burnout symptoms parallel to phenomena in
  non-service occupations (e.g., fatigue,
  alienation, withdrawal, efficacy)
• Artefact of the utilized research designs
  alternative hypotheses untested

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Measurement of Burnout
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Two ways of diagnosis

• (Company) doctors using diagnostic session -
  decision tree
• Questionnaire (self-reports)

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MBI OLBI

• Emotional Exhaustion (9) feelings of being
  emotionally overextended and drained by others
• Depersonalization (5) feelings of callous,
  cynical and detached responses toward clients
• Reduced Personal Ac-complishment (8) decline in
  ones feelings of competence and successful
  achievement in work with people

• Exhaustion (7) feelings of emotional emptiness,
  overtaxing from work, strong need for rest and a
  state of physical exhaustion
• Distancing from work (8) distancing oneself from
  ones work, negative attitudes and behaviours
  toward work in general, work contents and object

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Oldenburg Burnout Inventory

• Positive and negative worded items
• Only the core dimensions of burnout
• Not context-specific
• Based on theory and not on empirical findings
• Cut-off scores - clinical burnout - above
  the 75 percentile on both
  dimensions

Demerouti, 1999
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Example items OLBI MBI-GS

• Exhaustion (OLBI)
• After my work, I usually feel worn out and
  weary
• After my work, I usually feel totally fit for my
  leisure activities (R).
• Distancing from work (OLBI)
• I usually talk about my work in a derogatory
  way
• I get more and more engaged in my work (R)
• (1 totally disagree, 4 totally agree)
• Exhaustion (MBI-GS)
• I feel burned out from my work, I feel tired
  when I get up in the morning and have to face
  another day on the job.
• Cynicism (MBI-GS)
• I have become less enthusiastic about my work,
  I have become more cynical about whether my work
  contributes anything.
•  Professional efficacy (MBI-GS)
• I feel I am making an effective contribution to
  what this organization does, In my opinion, I
  am good at my job.
• (0 never, 6 every day)

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Theoretical explanations
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Demand-Control Model
Job Demands
Karasek, 1979
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Effort-Reward Imbalance Model
Siegrist, 1996
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Inequity Model
Schaufeli et al. 1996
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Job Demands
Role conflict
Work-Home
Work times
Emotional Demands
Work Pressure
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Job Resources
Skill Variety
Possibilities Self-growth
Supervisory Coaching
Social Support
Autonomy
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Balance
Role conflict
Skill Variety
Work-Home
Possibilities Self-growth
Work times
Coaching
Emotional Demands
Social Support
Work pressure
Autonomy
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Job Demands-Resources Model
Mental
Job Demands
(Impaired) Health

Emotional
-
Physical
Organizational Outcomes
Etc.
-
Support
Job Resources
Motivation


Autonomy
Feedback
Etc.
Demerouti et al., 2001
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Assumptions

• Unique Working Environment for every occupational
  group
• 2 categories Job Demands and Job Resources
• 2 Processes
• Health Impairment process
• Motivational process
• Job Resources can be Buffer against Job Demands
• Job Demands may undermine the Motivational Impact
  of Job Resources

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Research findings
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Human services, production, ATC, N
374 Self-reports, observers ratings (italics)
Demerouti et al., 2001
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Demerouti et al., 2000
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Food Processing Industry, N214
Job Demands
Burnout
T2 LT Absence
WP
.63
.21
.92
Reorgan
.58
-.68
Job Resources
T2 ST Absence
.62
Autonomy
Commitment
.96
-.20
Participation
.67
Bakker, Demerouti, De Boer Schaufeli, 2003
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(No Transcript)
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Human Services, N146
Bakker, Demerouti Verbeke, 2004
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(Im) Balance
Impaired health Low motivation
Impaired health Motivation
H
JOB DEMANDS
Health Low motivation
Health Motivation
L
L
H
JOB RESOURCES
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Study among salespersons (N 650)

• burned-out salespeople lowest in-role
  extra-role performance
• non burned-out salespeople highest in-role
  extra-role performance
• customer-exhausted among the highest performers
  (in-role extra-role performance) ? compensation
  strategy
• customer-depersonalized in-role performance
  uninfluenced, extra-role performance diminished ?
  loss-based selection, in a proactive manner
• ineffective highest similarity with the
  burned-out group (low in- extra-role
  performance) ? feelings of in-efficiency poor
  professional self-esteem
• !!! The relationship between burnout
  performance is not clear cut!

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Reciprocal effects

• Exhaustion ? Errors ? more JD ? more Exhaustion
• Depersonalisation ? negative behaviour ? less JR
  ? more Depersonalisation
• Competence ? good performance ? more JR ? more
  Competence
• Negative or Positive Spiral...

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Bakker, Demerouti, van Dierendock Schaufeli,
submitted
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Work engagement
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Towards positive psychology

• Most psychologists are busy with sicknesses
  instead of well-being
• - Publications on negative vs. positive states
  are 171 (Diener et al., 1999)
• Causes of sicknesses are not identical with the
  causes of well-being
• Absence of sickness does not automatically mean
  presence of well-being
• Different focus instead of treatment and
  prevention, improvement and optimalization!

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Burnout vs. Engagement
Exhaustion
Red. Competence
Cynicism
Absorption
Vigor
Dedication
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Work engagement definition

• Engagement a positive, fulfilling, work-related
  state of mind that is characterized by vigor,
  dedication, and absorption (Schaufeli et al.,
  2004). It refers to a persistent and pervasive
  affectivecognitive state that is not focused on
  any particular object, event, individual, or
  behavior.
• Dimensions
• Vigor is characterized by high levels of energy
  and mental resilience while working, the
  willingness to invest effort in ones work, and
  persistence also in the face of difficulties.
• Dedication is characterized by a sense of
  significance, enthusiasm, inspiration, pride, and
  challenge.
• Absorption is characterized by being fully
  concentrated and happily engrossed in ones work,
  whereby time passes quickly and one has
  difficulties with detaching oneself from work.

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Work Engagement

• Vigor
• At my work, I feel bursting with energy
• At my job, I feel strong and vigorous
• Dedication
• To me, my job is challenging
• I am enthusiastic about my job
• Absorption
• When I am working, I forget everything else
  around me
• I am completely immersed in my work

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Engaged Employees

• Take personal initiative
• Generate their own positive feedback
• Are also engaged outside their work
• Are tired in a different way
• Also want to do other things than working

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Prevalence

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Home Care, N45.000
Workload
Job Demands
Burnout
Client Satisfaction
Emotions

-
Intimity
Work-Home
-
Support
Job Resources
Engagement
Efficiency
Autonomy


Feedback
Coaching
Source Taris, Bakker et al. (in prep.)
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(No Transcript)
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Burnout interventions
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Overview of the strategies
Focus
Individual
Organization
Aim
Identification
Primary prevention
Secundary prevention
Treatment
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Organisational strategies

• Risk inventarisation
• Screening

Identification
Primary prevention

• Regulation of work pressure
• Job design / task content

• Conflict management
• Management Development

Secondary prevention

• Contact company doctor
• Social-medical team

Treatment
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Individual strategies

• Self-monitoring
• Self-assessment

Identification
Primary prevention

• Didactic stress management
• Work-Family balance

Secondary prevention

• Time management
• Relaxation training

• Social medical supervision
• Psychotherapy

Treatment
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Success (meta-analysis)
k
N
d
Effect
Cogn. therapy
18
858
.68
moderate
17
982
.35
small
Relaxation
8
470
.51
moderate
Multimodal
5
1463
.08
non-sign.
Organization
Van der Klink et al. (2000)
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Critical success factors

• Stepwise systematic approach
• Adequate diagnosis and analyses of the problems
• Combination of work- and person-oriented
  approaches
• Active participation of all involving parties
• Commitment of the top

Kompier Cooper (1999)
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JDR-Project
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JDR-Project
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Feedback Well-Being
Source www.hcmg.co.uk
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Feedback Job Demands
Source www.hcmg.co.uk
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Feedback Job Resources
Source www.hcmg.co.uk
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(No Transcript)
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Summary and Future

• Burnout Syndrome of our times
• More clarity regarding causality consequences
• Multi-dimensional approaches
• JDR-model flexible and static structure
• Scientific - Integration
• Practice Application to organizations, teams,
  and individuals
• Future Research
• Longitudinal, positive health indicators,
  reciprocal relations, burnout contagion and
  crossover, international research

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E.Demerouti_at_fss.uu.nl

• Thank you for your attention!