The Research On Psychological And Situational Factors Influencing JOB Burnout Of Nurses

OBJECTIVES: Job burnout is a prolonged response to chronic emotional and interpersonal stressors on the job, and is defined by the three dimensions of exhaustion, depersonalization, and reduced accomplishment. Nurses are risk population of burnout. Burnout precipitates negative effects on health and job performance which are mental dysfunction, physical discomfort and job withdrawal, such as anxiety, depression, headache, insomnias, absenteeism, lower effectiveness, and so forth.It is mostly considered by overseas researchers that the interaction of psychological factors and situational factors influences burnout of nurses together.Domestic researches on burnout develop more lately and slowly. Most of the researches about burnout of nurses have merely emphasized particularly on some aspect, which are not enough systematic and consummate. Herein, we attempt to carry out systematic research on the psychological and situational factors' influence on burnout of nurses, then to provide theoretical basis of the psychological adjustment and intervention for the nurses and organizations.METHODS: The sample consisted of 245 nurses with 1 or more years of experience who were randomly selected from Shandong University Qilu Hospital. The instruments studied included Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), Nursing Job Stress Inventory (NJSI), Simple Coping Strategies Questionnaire (SCSQ); Social Support Rating Scale(SSRS), Work Locus of Control Scales (WLCS), Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scales (RSES), Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (Adult) (EPQ) and self-made questionnaire aboutindividual information. Data was analyzed with SPSS10.0 statistic software. RESULTS: The effective response rate was 95% (n=232).1. Burnout morbidity was significant. 67. 3% of informants scored as moderate or high burnout cases on the Personal Accomplishment subscale of the MBI, 64.7% on the Emotional Exhaustion subscale, 33.6% on the Depersonalization subscale. Nurses in our study experienced lower personal accomplishment, higher emotional exhaustion and lower depersonalization than ones in Maslach's study.2. We found significant associations between the MBI scales and demographic variables such as age, work experience, family, marriage, economy, educational level, section office.3. Burnout of nurses was negatively correlated to active coping styles but positively to passive coping styles.4. Burnout is higher among nurses who have an external locus of control and low self-esteem rather than internal locus of control and high self-esteem.5. The level of burnout was confirmed as being positively relevant to introversion, neuroticism, psychotics, lying.6. Higher work stress led to higher burnout.7. Social support alleviated burnout.8. By liner regression analysis, we found the main factors which influence burnout.â‘  The main factors which influence emotional exhaustion included neuroticism, experienced workload and time pressure, total work stress, family communication, the use of support and economy of family.â‘¡ The main factors which influence depersonalization included total work stress, marriage, psychotics, self-esteem and family communication.â‘¢The main factors which influence personal accomplishment included active coping styles, lying, manage style and interpersonal relationship and objective support.CONCLUSIONS: Burnout has seriously negative effect on health and job performance. These findings suggest that burnout of nurses is influenced by psychological factors and situational factors together. We can effectively prevent and alleviate burnout by use of personal psychological and organizational comprehensive intervention, which improve nurses' health and work efficiency.