Burnout and Job Satisfaction in Social Workers in the Ñuble Region, Chile
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The objective of this article is to analyze the burnout level (exhaustion, chronic fatigue) in social workers of the Ñuble Region of Chile and to study the association of adverse labor phenomena -high emotional demands, workplace harassment, occupational vulnerability and work overload- with burnout and between burnout and such phenomena with job dissatisfaction. A cross-sectional study was carried out by applying a self-report questionnaire to 173 social workers (143 women and 30 men) of the Intersectoral Network of Social Workers in the Ñuble Region. The results show that 6.9% of respondents experience Burnout syndrome. Bivariate analyses show an association of high emotional demands, presence of workplace harassment, and work overload with Burnout. Additionally, associations were found between Burnout, workplace harassment the last 6 months, job vulnerability, and job instability with job dissatisfaction. By adjusting for public attention and years of trajectory it was found that workers with high emotional demands (OR=6.811), workplace harassment (OR=5.430), and workload (OR=4.431) have a higher chance of experiencing Burnout than those who do not report such conditions. Finally, an analysis was made by salary tranche and type of contract, those reporting burnout (OR=4.042), job vulnerability (OR=2.464), or job instability (OR=2.526) have more chance to experience job dissatisfaction than those who do not report these phenomena.
- Burnout
- Social Work
- Job satisfaction
- Mental health
- Emotional demands
- Workload
- Workplace harassment
- Job vulnerability
Andrea María Palma-Contreras, Universidad del Bío-Bío. Chillán, Chile
Doctor in Psychology. Master in Social Work and Family. Social Worker.
Francisca Antonia Marchant-Troncoso, 2Universidad del Bío-Bío. Chillán, Chile
Graduate in Social WorkViviana Edith Vera-Meza, Universidad del Bío-Bío. Chillán, Chile
Graduate in Social Work.María Josefina Larraín-Valenzuela, Universidad del Desarrollo. Santiago, Chile
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