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Burnout Prevention Through Personal Growth

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Dirk van Dierendonck at Rotterdam School of Management
Dirk van Dierendonck
Bert Garssen at Helen Dowling Institute for Psycho-oncology
Bert Garssen
  • Helen Dowling Institute for Psycho-oncology
Adriaan Visser at Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences
Adriaan Visser
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Abstract

This study evaluated the effects of a burnout prevention program based on insights from transpersonal psychology, notably psychosynthesis. It examined the effects of the program on burnout, happiness, spirituality, emotional intelligence, and relative deprivation with respect to one's career. Thirty-eight individuals, mostly with a background in engineering, participated in a 10-day program over 3 months. A comparison group of similar age and work experience was recruited of colleagues from the same firms and departments. Both groups filled out questionnaires at 3 time points: before the start of the program, immediately after the program (3 months later), and 9 months later. Results showed that a psychosynthesis-based prevention program might be an effective instrument in reducing burnout and enhancing happiness, emotional intelligence, and feelings of spirituality. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
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Burnout Prevention Through Personal Growth
Dirk van Dierendonck
Helen Dowling Institute and University of Amsterdam
Bert Garssen and Adriaan Visser
Helen Dowling Institute
This study evaluated the effects of a burnout prevention program based on
insights from transpersonal psychology, notably psychosynthesis. It exam-
ined the effects of the program on burnout, happiness, spirituality, emotional
intelligence, and relative deprivation with respect to one’s career. Thirty-
eight individuals, mostly with a background in engineering, participated in a
10-day program over 3 months. A comparison group of similar age and work
experience was recruited of colleagues from the same firms and departments.
Both groups filled out questionnaires at 3 time points: before the start of the
program, immediately after the program (3 months later), and 9 months
later. Results showed that a psychosynthesis-based prevention program
might be an effective instrument in reducing burnout and enhancing happi-
ness, emotional intelligence, and feelings of spirituality.
KEY WORDS: burnout prevention; happiness; psychosynthesis; transpersonal psychology;
spirituality
Individuals most vulnerable to burnout are often those who are strongly
motivated and involved in their work. For these individuals, work is an
important source from which to derive meaning in life. If these individuals no
longer find meaning through achieving their goals and expectations, burnout
is a likely end result. Burnout can be defined as “a persistent, work-related
state of mind in ‘normal’ individuals that is primarily characterized by
exhaustion, which is accompanied by distress, a sense of reduced effective-
Dirk van Dierendonck, Helen Dowling Institute, Utrecht, the Netherlands, and Depart-
ment of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Bert Garssen and
Adriaan Visser, Helen Dowling Institute.
This research was financed by Zorg Onderzoek Nederland. We thank Thom Koot and
Sandra Wesdorp for their contribution in developing and giving this training. The research was
conducted while Dirk van Dierendonck was employed at the Helen Dowling Institute.
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Dirk van Dierendonck,
who is now at the School of Management, Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam, P.O. Box 1738,
3000 DR Rotterdam, the Netherlands. E-mail: D.vanDierendonck@fbk.eur.nl
International Journal of Stress Management Copyright 2005 by the Educational Publishing Foundation
2005, Vol. 12, No. 1, 62–77 1072-5245/05/$12.00 DOI: 10.1037/1072-5245.12.1.62
62
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
... Achieving this balance combats three burnout dimensions: exhaustion (emotional resource depletion), cynicism (indifference toward or distance from work), and reduced professional efficacy (lack of satisfaction with past vs. present expectations; Halbesleben & Buckley, 2004;Maslach, 2003;van Dierendonck, Garssen, & Visser, 2005). In turn, when early careerists receive varied opportunities, it facilitates their willingness to receive and learn from them (Hersey & Blanchard, 1988), fostering an earlymid "win-win." ...
... A personally conducive job structure supports the midcareer emphasis on intrinsic rewards over monetary incentives (Williams & Fox, 1995). Engaging in offloading also helps mid-career workers stave off the "mid-career blues," or "mid-career crisis": feeling over-saddled with their responsibilities and underachieving in their accomplishments (Malakh-Pines, Aronson, & Kafry, 1981;Pakkala, 2010;van Dierendonck et al., 2005). Likewise, engaging in mentoring predicts increased job fulfillment (Freiberg, Zbikowski, & Ganser, 1997;Stortz, 2005;Workman, 2005). ...
... Burnout prevention requires more than simply reducing exhaustion-achieved in part via off-loading tasks, as described-but also by combatting cynicism and inefficacy, as mentioned (Halbesleben & Buckley, 2004;Maslach, 2003). Effective intervention of each requires happiness, life purpose, inner resources, interpersonal interconnectedness, and emotional intelligence (van Dierendonck et al., 2005). Nevertheless, mid-career workers often have too little time and too much responsibility to achieve these adaptive states. ...
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... People experience happiness when they feel many pleasant and few unpleasant emotions (Diener, 2000). Various authors demonstrate that happiness is negatively associated with burnout and stress (Van Dierendonck et al., 2005;Feicht et al., 2013). Moreover, Demerouti et al. (2018) showed that generally perceived happiness is not only strongly negatively associated with exhaustion, but also strongly positively associated with disengagement at work. ...
... Something that will still be there before and after oneself and that is beyond everyday experience, e.g., God or nature (Esch, 2011). The relationship between spirituality, faith, belief and burnout or stress was examined in several general population studies (Van Dierendonck et al., 2005;Esch, 2008aEsch, ,b, 2010Esch, , 2011Esch, , 2017Esch, , 2019Doolittle et al., 2013;Daniel, 2014;Ho et al., 2016;Yang et al., 2017;Watson et al., 2019). Initial evidence points to the direction that individuals who are more religious or spiritual than others tend to possess higher resilience levels and are therefore less likely to be affected by burnout (Carneiro et al., 2019). ...
Bio-Psycho-Socio-Spirito-Cultural Factors of Burnout: A Systematic Narrative Review of the Literature
Article
Full-text available
  • Dec 2021
Background: Burnout is a widespread, multifactorial, and mainly psychological phenomenon. The pathogenesis of burnout is commonly described within the bio-psycho-social model of health and disease. Recent literature suggests that the phenomenon of burnout may be broader so that the three dimensions might not reflect the multifaceted and complex nature of the syndrome. Consequently, this review aims to identify the diversity of factors related to burnout, to define overarching categories based on these, and to clarify whether the bio-psycho-social model adequately describes the pathogenesis of burnout—holistically and sufficiently. Method: Five online databases (PubMed, PubPsych, PsychARTICLES, Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection, and Google Scholar) were systematically searched using defined search terms to identify relevant studies. The publication date was set between January 1981 and November 2020. Based on the selected literature, we identified factors related to burnout. We aggregated these factors into a comprehensible list and assigned them to overarching categories. Then, we assigned the factors to the dimensions of an extended model of health and disease. Results: We identified a total of 40 burnout-related factors and 10 overarching categories. Our results show that in addition to biological, psychological, and socio-environmental factors, various factors that can be assigned to a spiritual and work cultural dimension also play an important role in the onset of burnout. Conclusion: An extended bio-psycho-socio-spirito-cultural model is necessary to describe the pathogenesis of burnout. Therefore, future studies should also focus on spiritual and work cultural factors when investigating burnout. Furthermore, these factors should not be neglected in future developments of diagnosis, treatment, and prevention options.
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... In addition to these factors, there is initial evidence that the bio-psycho-social model of Engel (1977) is not sufficient to assign all factors related to burnout to the current version of the health and disease model and thus to describe the pathogenesis of the syndrome in a holistic manner. Various identified factors (e.g., perceived meaningfulness and a sense of homeliness) that have previously received little or no attention in burnout research also seem to be associated with (chronic) stress or burnout (Van Dierendonck et al., 2005;Cicognani et al., 2009;Doolittle et al., 2013;Ivtzan et al., 2013;Daniel, 2014;Fragoso et al., 2016;Esch, 2017Esch, , 2019Van Wingerden and van der Stoep, 2017). Thus, investigations have also suggested that the phenomenon of burnout may gain a broader understanding in the context of spiritual factors (Van Dierendonck et al., 2005;Doolittle et al., 2013;Ivtzan et al., 2013;Daniel, 2014;Fragoso et al., 2016;Esch, 2017Esch, , 2019Van Wingerden and van der Stoep, 2017) and work culture, or the sense of "feeling at home" at the workplace (e.g., through sharing the same values) (Cicognani et al., 2009;Asensio-Martínez et al., 2017). ...
... Various identified factors (e.g., perceived meaningfulness and a sense of homeliness) that have previously received little or no attention in burnout research also seem to be associated with (chronic) stress or burnout (Van Dierendonck et al., 2005;Cicognani et al., 2009;Doolittle et al., 2013;Ivtzan et al., 2013;Daniel, 2014;Fragoso et al., 2016;Esch, 2017Esch, , 2019Van Wingerden and van der Stoep, 2017). Thus, investigations have also suggested that the phenomenon of burnout may gain a broader understanding in the context of spiritual factors (Van Dierendonck et al., 2005;Doolittle et al., 2013;Ivtzan et al., 2013;Daniel, 2014;Fragoso et al., 2016;Esch, 2017Esch, , 2019Van Wingerden and van der Stoep, 2017) and work culture, or the sense of "feeling at home" at the workplace (e.g., through sharing the same values) (Cicognani et al., 2009;Asensio-Martínez et al., 2017). ...
An Empirical Investigation of the Relationship Between Spirituality, Work Culture, and Burnout: The Need for an Extended Health and Disease Model
Article
Full-text available
  • Sep 2021
Apart from biological, psychological, and social factors, recent studies indicate that spirituality and work culture also play an important role in the onset of burnout. Hence, the commonly applied bio-psycho-social model of health and disease might not be sufficient to comprehensively explain and describe burnout. This study empirically investigates the relationship between spirituality (operationalized by perceived meaningfulness of work) and work culture (operationalized by sense of homeliness of the working environment) with burnout risk and work engagement. For this purpose, an anonymous cross-sectional data collection with fully standardized questionnaires and selected socio-demographic and work-related items was conducted among working adults ( n = 439) from different industries via social media and local health service centers. For all scales and subscales, we found significant moderate to strong correlations. Furthermore, positive meaning within the perceived meaningfulness of work scale was the largest beta coefficient for burnout (β = −0.65) and work engagement (β = 0.62). Within sense of homeliness, the largest beta coefficient for burnout was needs fulfillment (β = −0.34) and work engagement emotional connection (β = 0.36). The strong associations suggest that the current health and disease model needs to be expanded to a bio-psycho-socio-spirito-cultural model to be able to sufficiently describe burnout. The perceived meaningfulness of work and a sense of homeliness should be adequately considered when examining the onset of burnout, describing burnout as a concept, and explaining work engagement.
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... The response category pertaining to professional development and the status of the profession showed that most respondents believed that personal development and burnout prevention programs significantly contribute to work satisfaction and stress reduction. A study (Van Dierendonck et al., 2005) confirmed the significance of such programs, with participants exhibiting lower levels of exhaustion and higher levels of happiness and professional effectiveness compared to the control group. These results highlight continuing professional development and adequate support programs as the key factors in stress management and the promotion of professional satisfaction in this occupation. ...
Burnout syndrome among special education teachers at schools for children with disabilities in the Republic of Serbia: Challenges and risk factors
Article
Full-text available
  • Dec 2024
Burnout syndrome has become remarkably widespread, especially in the helping professions. As such, it constitutes an increasingly common research topic. The present study aimed to assess burnout in special education teachers employed at special education schools in Serbia. Likewise, it sought to analyze differences in burnout levels depending on respondents? sociodemographic characteristics and identify burnout-related factors and strategies for overcoming burnout from the perspective of special education teachers. Professional burnout syndrome was assessed using the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI) adapted for use in a special education teacher sample. The study involved 191 special education teachers (91.1% female) employed at schools in the Republic of Serbia. The results showed that special education teachers exhibited a certain level of burnout. In terms of sociodemographic characteristics, only respondent age and work experience positively correlated with professional burnout. There were no differences in burnout levels depending on other sociodemographic characteristics. The qualitative content analysis showed that burnout-inducing factors included a lack of support, administrative overload, and working with heterogeneous student groups. The most common burnout prevention strategies included physical activity, support from colleagues and family, and maintaining a good work-life balance. These findings highlight the need to improve working conditions and introduce support programs to decrease burnout levels among special education teachers.
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... A review by Awa et al. (2010) concluded that personalized burnout prevention programs are effective in the short term (6 months or less), while programs targeting both individuals and organizations show positive effectiveness in the long term (12 months or more). Garssen and Visser (2005) conducted burnout prevention training based on transpersonal psychological principles for engineers over a 3-month period, totaling 10 sessions. They assessed burnout levels, happiness, and emotional intelligence at the beginning, end, and 9 months after the training. ...
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  • Oct 2024
The aim of this study is to examine the role of psychoeducation in preventing burnout among Hungarian teachers. Psychoeducation is a structured method of delivering professional information, combining elements of education, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and grouptherapy, with the goal of developing coping strategies to maintain health and ensure therapeutic collaboration. As part of the research, a 30-hour training program was developed and implemented with two groups, consisting of kindergarten and special education teachers (N=35). The core components of the training included self-awareness exercises, autogenic training techniques, and conflict management strategies. Changes in participants' burnout levels, psychological immune systems, coping methods, and perceived social support were assessed using pre- and post-training questionnaires (Maslach Burnout Inventory Educator Survey (MBI-ES), Oláh’s Psychological Immune System Survey, Coping Methods Questionnaire, MOS SSS-H Social Support Questionnaire, and Mental Health Test). A significant reduction in burnout was observed. The findings support previous research indicating that psychoeducation can effectively reduce stress and burnout, though its effectiveness may depend on various factors, such as the length and intensity of the program, as well as participants' motivation and commitment. Future research should involve larger sample sizes and longitudinal designs to assess the long-term benefits of psychoeducational interventions more accurately for teacher burnout.
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... Bulgularımız, beklendiği gibi, akademisyenlerin dengeli benlik (ilişkililik ve kendileşme) yönelimlerinin, genel esenliklerini (psikolojik esenliklerini ve yaşam doyumlarını), farklı çalışan gruplarını içeren önceki araştırma bulgularıyla tutarlı olarak hem doğrudan (İmamoğlu ve Beydoğan, 2011), hem de düşük tükenmişlik düzeyi aracılığıyla yordadığını göstermiştir. Yine ilgili yayınlarla uyumlu olarak (örn., Van Dierendonck, Garssen ve Visser, 2005), düşük tükenmişlik düzeyinin, psikolojik esenliğin ve yaşam doyumunun yanı sıra iş doyumu üzerindeki rolü de desteklenmiştir. Tükenmişlikle ilgili olarak, genellikle işe ilişkin çevresel koşulların etkisi üzerinde duran araştırmaları (örn., Hakanen, Bakker ve Schaufeli, 2006;Karabıyık, Eker ve Anbar, 2008) tamamlayıcı şekilde, mevcut çalışmada elde edilen bulgular, bu konuda çalışanların benlik kurgularının rolüne dikkat çekmekte; ilişkililik ve kendileşme yönelimlerinin, düşük tükenmişlik düzeyi aracılığıyla da çalışanların iş doyumunu ve genel esenliğini yordayabileceğine işaret etmektedir. ...
Dengeli Benlik Yönelimleri ile Esenlik Arasındaki İlişkide Egosistem – Ekosistem Motivasyonlarının, Aşkınlığın, Özşefkatin ve Tükenmişliğin Rolü: Akademisyenler Üzerinde bir Model Sınaması
Article
Full-text available
  • Aug 2023
  • TURK PSIKOL DERG
Sunulan çalışmanın amacı, benlik yapısıyla ilgili Dengeli Bütünleşme ve Ayırdetme-Ayrışma Modeli’nin temel savlarından hareketle, akademisyenlerin benlik yönelimleri (ilişkililik ve kendileşme) ile iş yaşamına ilişkin (tükenmişlik duygusu, iş doyumu) ve genel esenlikleri (yaşam doyumu ve psikolojik esenlik) arasındaki ilişkide, birbiri ile bağlantılı motivasyonel yönelimlerinin (düşük egosistem, yüksek ekosistem, aşkınlık) ve özşefkat duygularının aracı rolünü öneren bir modeli sınamaktır. Türkiye’de farklı üniversiteler ve bölümlerden 250 akademisyenin gönüllü olarak katıldığı çalışmada Dengeli Bütünleşme ve Ayırdetme-Ayrışma Ölçeği, Ekosistem ve Egosistem Motivasyonları Ölçeği, Aşkınlık Ölçeği, Özşefkat Ölçeği, Maslach Tükenmişlik Envanteri, İş Doyumu Sorusu, Psikolojik Esenlik Ölçeği ve Yaşam Doyumu Ölçeği kullanılmıştır. Önerilen model yol analizleri ile sınanmıştır. Beklendiği doğrultuda, (a) akademisyenlerin benlik yönelimlerinin genel esenliklerini hem doğrudan hem de düşük tükenmişlik düzeyi aracılığıyla yordadığı; (b) ilişkililik yönelimi ile bağlantılı yüksek ekosistem ve kendileşme yönelimi ile bağlantılı düşük egosistem motivasyonları ile beslenen aşkınlık eğilimlerinin yüksek olmasının, akademisyenlerin kendilerine özşefkat ile yaklaşabilmelerini yordadığı; ayrıca (c) ilişkililik ve kendileşme yönelimlerinin, düşük tükenmişlik ve yüksek esenlik düzeyleri üzerindeki doğrudan etkilerinin yanı sıra, yüksek özşefkat düzeylerinin de aracı rol oynadığı ortaya konmuştur. Dengeli benlik yapısının ve bağlantılı motivasyonel ve özşefkat yönelimlerinin, iş ile ilgili ve genel esenlik bakımından önemine işaret eden bulgular, kuramsal ve çalışma yaşamına ilişkin doğurguları çerçevesinde tartışılmaktadır.
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... This finding corroborated the findings of Akinboye and Adeyemo (2002) also found that some people are generally more stress prone while others are generally less stress prone depending on their personality traits. In the same vein, Riolli and Savicki (2003) and Van-Dierendonck (2005) reported that personality characteristics of employees have the tendency to moderate the effect of stressful situations on employees such that certain traits may buffer or enhance more negative outcomes than others. The findings are consistent with those of Kokkinos (2007) to experience) on secretaries' job stress. ...
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... The world is facing around six thousand deaths daily, reported to World Health Organization (WHO). Many people suffer grief and multiple losses during the COVID-19 pandemic, including a loss of job, money, support services, or loved-ones [1][2][3][4]. Loss of a loved one might result in severe psychological trauma [5]. Some research indicates that the younger a person who experiences it is, the worse the consequences [6]. ...
Self- and Other-Focused Emotional Intelligence, Situational Emotional Understanding, and Experience of Loss
Article
  • Dec 2021
The links between emotional intelligence and loss are under-researched, even though a lot of studies have investigated the psychological outcomes of traumatic experiences. Many people suffered multiple losses during the COVID-19 pandemic, including a loss of job, money, support services, or loved ones. The loss of a loved one might result in severe psychological trauma, and research suggests that early-life trauma relates to numerous forms of emotion dysregulation, including stress-reactivity. The consequences of loss for people with special needs deserve special attention since it often means not only the loss of a loved one but also the usual way of life. Thus, it is essential to analyze various aspects of loss experience, including the impact on emotional regulation, to reduce the harmful consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of this research was to examine emotional intelligence in groups of those who have a recent experience of loss and those who have not and to establish the impact of the experience of loss on the human psyche and mental health. We have analyzed the results of a simple random sample of gymnasium students (n=362). We hypothesized that the recent loss of a loved one diminishes the ability to understand self and other focused emotions as well as situational emotions. The survey has revealed that respondents who experienced the loss of a loved one understood better how individuals felt in the presented situations than those who did not have such experience. The premise that people who have experienced the loss of a loved one have a lower understanding of emotions than their peers who did not have such an experience has not been confirmed.
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Stronger is not always better - The ambivalent effect of social identity and relative deprivation on burnout among Hungarian teachers
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A meta-analytic examination of the correlates of the three dimensions of job burnout
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The dimensionality of Maslach's (1982) 3 aspects of job burnout—emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and personal accomplishment—was examined among a sample of supervisors and managers in the human services. A series of confirmatory factor analyses supported the 3-factor model, with the first 2 aspects highly correlated. The 3 aspects were found to be differentially related to other variables reflecting aspects of strain, stress coping, and self-efficacy in predictable and meaningful ways. Implications for better understanding the burnout process are discussed.
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A Meta-Analytic Examination of the Correlates of the Three Dimensions of Job Burnout
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This meta-analysis examined how demand and resource correlates and behavioral and attitudinal correlates were related to each of the 3 dimensions of job burnout. Both the demand and resource correlates were more strongly related to emotional exhaustion than to either depersonalization or personal accomplishment. Consistent with the conservation of resources theory of stress, emotional exhaustion was more strongly related to the demand correlates than to the resource correlates, suggesting that workers might have been sensitive to the possibility of resource loss. The 3 burnout dimensions were differentially related to turnover intentions, organizational commitment, and control coping. Implications for research and the amelioration of burnout are discussed.
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This third version of the MBI was developed across several occupations and countries, in order to assess burnout in all occupations. It was originally published in 1996 by CPP, but is now published and distributed online by Mind Garden (www.mindgarden.com/products/mbi.htm)
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Article
  • Jan 1964
Introduction I am faced with the problem that the psychoanalyst would be faced with if he were asked to tell us in one hour, or one hour and a half, about psychoanalysis; the subject is so vast that it is almost impossible to bring it into a very short discussion. My presentation, then, will be much more indicative, much more an introduction, than anything thorough. What I intend to do is to briefly tell you what Psychosynthesis means. We have to start with first things first, and very briefly enumerate some of the sages in this kind of therapy. And then, in order to really get down to something more concrete, I will take up one of the techniques of psychosynthesis. There are many such techniques, but I felt that by taking one which is not yet widely known in this country, it would be rather novel. What I intend to do in the second session is to give you an actual excerpt from a therapy case which illustrates some of the approaches that I will mention in this session and which is more specifically related to what might be called a "spiritual" experience during a therapy session. PRINCIPLES OF PSYCHOSYNTHESIS Now, first of all, what is meant by Psychosynthesis? The concept of psychosynthesis was introduced and steadily developed over more than forty years by Roberto Assagioli, M.D., an Italian psychiatrist who founded in 1926 the Istituto di Psicosintesi in Rome. Dr. Assagioli combined in his psychotherapeutic practice the use of various techniques of psychotherapy, and experimented with and applied a series of techniques to further the process of psychosynthesis. I was attracted to his work because of the similarity of our approach to psychotherapy and made it a point to meet him personally during a trip to Europe in the summer of 1955. This was the beginning of our friendship and professional association. For instance, with the support of the Psychosynthesis Research Foundation, I spent the spring of 1959 in Florence to collaborate intensively with him on the theory and techniques of psychosynthesis. You have heard, of course, a great deal about psychoanalysis, particularly the psychoanalysis of Freud and of his followers, the neo-Freudians, persons like Karen Homey and Erich Fromm, and also about the analytical psychology of the Swiss psychiatrist, C. G. Jung. This emphasis on analysis has been prevalent for quite a while in psychotherapy. Analysis is a separation of the whole into component parts in order to be able to understand the nature, function and relationship of these parts. But analysis is not enough in psychotherapy. We need to go beyond analysis, without discarding what is of value in analysis. We need to translate analytic understanding and insight into actual change in our feelings, our attitudes and behavior. In short, the goal is not analysis; it is much snore. It is synthesis, namely an integration, a wholeness, a unity, a harmonious use of all of our functions, of all of our potentialities, of all of our drives. The word "synthesis" comes from the Greek word "syn", which means "together", and the Greek word "thesis", meaning "a placing". So, synthesis is a placing together, a putting together of parts so as to form an integrated whole.
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