| Compassion fatigue is a state of detachment and isolation experienced when health care providers repeatedly engage with patients in distress. Compassion fatigue can hinder empathy and cause extreme tension. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship and predictability of selected social and work-related factors on the degree of compassion fatigue among licensed mental health professionals. This study specifically examined the variables: gender, age, spiritual connection, marital status, work setting, workload, job satisfaction and morale.;A correlational research design was used to study compassion fatigue in a sample of 121 licensed mental health professionals employed on United States military installations. Data were collected using two instruments, the Professional Quality of Life Scale and a modified version of the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire (short form).;The results revealed a linear relationship of the social factors gender, age, spiritual connection, and marital status with the degree of compassion fatigue among licensed mental health professionals. In addition, the work-related factors of work setting, workload, job satisfaction, and morale were also significantly related to the degree of compassion fatigue among licensed mental health professionals. Moreover, when social and work-related factors were combined, they were found to have a significant linear relationship with the degree of compassion fatigue among licensed mental health professionals.;Perhaps the most interesting finding of the present study was the significant influence of demographic factors on the compassion fatigue among licensed mental health professionals. Even though age was found to be an independent predictor of compassion fatigue, a negative relationship existed between age and the degree of compassion fatigue in the present study. A plausible explanation for these findings may be that as licensed mental health professionals increased in age they are more aware of the risks involved in working with traumatized individuals. |
