The dynamics of emotional burnout and the level of neuropsychic maladjustment among camp counselors during 3 shifts.

Stupnikov Andrei Sergeevich ORCID: 0009-0005-2987-7687 Postgraduate student, Department of Psychology of Extreme and Crisis Situations, St. Petersburg State University 197345, Russia, Saint Petersburg, Turistskaya str., 13, sq. 5 andrei1996991@gmail.com Other publications by this author

Introduction

Emotional burnout by Maslach C., Jackson S., and Leiter M. It is described as "a syndrome of emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and a decrease in personal achievements that can occur in people working with other people" ^[10]. Emotional burnout is classified as a multidimensional condition that leads to a high level of physical and emotional exhaustion ^[10]. The Maslach Burnout Questionnaire ^[10] includes three indicators of emotional burnout: emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and reduction of professionalism. According to the authors of the questionnaire, the main factor contributing to emotional burnout is emotional exhaustion, which is a feeling of constant emotional overstrain and emptiness ^[11]. Depersonalization is described, on the one hand, as the development of a negative, unsympathetic or pessimistic attitude towards other people in the workplace, on the other, as the formal performance of professional duties without personal involvement and empathy. Employees experiencing depersonalization, as a rule, intentionally distance themselves from other colleagues, interact with them impersonally ^[11]. Finally, the reduction of professionalism reflects a negative feeling towards one's competence and achievements, as well as a tendency to be overly critical of one's work ^[9]. Research shows that emotional burnout is associated with decreased productivity, low motivation, and an increased propensity to change professions ^[11]. In addition, emotional burnout can be associated with a variety of somatic and mental diseases, for example, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal problems and disorders of the immune system, depression, anxiety, asthenia and other cognitive disorders ^{[7, 12]}.

The professional activity of a counselor in a children's health camp can probably be described as an activity with increased moral responsibility. This profession involves a high level of emotional saturation and the presence of a large number of factors that can cause stress. An unbalanced work and rest schedule, high workload in preparation for various events, night work and lack of sleep, intensive communication, conflict situations between all participants in the educational and educational process (which often require immediate reaction and solutions), lack of proper remuneration (both material and psychological) are only a small part of the components of the work a counselor, which creates a lot of prerequisites for the formation of an emotional burnout syndrome.

Burnout syndrome is being actively studied both in Russia and abroad, including in the field of education ^{[3, 4, 14, 16]}, health care ^[1.5]. At the same time, there is a significant lack of research on the problem of emotional burnout of children's camp staff, this phenomenon is considered only in a few studies ^{[6, 8, 13, 15]}. For example, in a study by Ko and co-authors ^[8], the relationship between aggression and emotional burnout was studied in 169 employees working in one summer camp for children with intellectual disabilities. The results of this study showed that camp counselors were exposed to a high level of aggression, which led to increased emotional exhaustion and a greater prevalence of the phenomenon of emotional burnout. The results of another study ^[6] showed that throughout the summer, the camp staff felt significantly worse and the level of emotional burnout increased. Particularly interesting, within the framework of our study, is the work of Zachary W.A. with co-authors ^[15], which studied the problem of emotional burnout of counselors in dynamics and in comparison between respondents of different genders. The authors concluded that during three shifts, the indicators of emotional exhaustion decrease in men, which is explained by the effect of initial stress. And women, compared with men, have a lesser degree of decrease in the level of personal achievements.

To date, the problem of emotional burnout of counselors in children's camps has not been studied enough. There are practically no articles in the Russian literature devoted to the study of this problem. There are some contradictory results in foreign literature about the formation of burnout among counselors. So, in the article Bailey, A and co-authors indicate a significant deterioration in the well-being of counselors during their work and a high level of emotional burnout ^[6], and in the article Zachary W.A. and co-authors, on the contrary, about a decrease in indicators of emotional exhaustion, low levels of depersonalization, reduction of professional achievements ^[16]. Besides this contradiction, there is another one. In our previous study ^[2], as a result of the diagnosis of 120 people, among whom 84 worked for the first time, it was found that 80 percent of counselors had at least one of the indicators of emotional burnout at a high level. High rates, combined with short work experience, in a sense contradict the definition of burnout as a result of chronic long-term stress in the workplace, which has not been successfully overcome. As a result, it is fair to assume either a very rapid formation of emotional burnout, or another phenomenon associated with burnout – maladaptation.

Thus, a significant lack of literature, contradictory conclusions regarding the formation of emotional burnout in the process of working as counselors (either the level of emotional burnout increases or, conversely, decreases), as well as the high prevalence of emotional burnout among counselors who work for the first time in their lives, suggest the need to study this problem, on the one hand, for a long time time, i.e. in dynamics, on the other hand, in connection with maladaptation. Thus, the purpose of this study was also to study changes in indicators of emotional burnout and the level of neuropsychiatric adaptation in counselors at different stages of work.

Methods.

Sample: 98 counselors from 3 camps of the Artek Medical Center, aged from 18 to 23 years, took part in our study; the average age of the respondents was 19.4 years. There are 86 female and 12 male representatives. For 64 respondents, the first stage of the study was on the first shift after vacation, for 9 people – on the second shift, for 10 – on the third, 8 – on the fourth, for 7 people, the first stage of the study was on their 5 or more shifts without vacation.

Description of the research procedure. The following methods were used: the questionnaire of emotional burnout K. Maslach, S. Jackson (adapted by N. E. Vodopyanova), the test "Neuropsychic adaptation" I.N. Gurvich. All employees who participated in the study were diagnosed three times during the summer. The first iteration of the diagnosis was performed on the 10th day of the camp shift (in the middle of the first shift). The second and third measurements were also carried out on the 10th day of the second and third shifts.

Statistical data processing was carried out using the SPSS program using variance analysis with repeated measurements (Bonferoni correction), comparative analysis (Mann-Whitney criterion).

Results.

As a result of primary data processing, the average sample values at the first, second and third stages of the study were distributed as follows: on the scale of "emotional exhaustion" (16.9; 17.4; 22.4, respectively), "depersonalization" (4.7; 5.3; 8, respectively), "reduction of professionalism" (inverted scale: 36.6; 36.9; 34.8, respectively) and on the scale of "neuropsychic adaptation" (19.9; 20.6; 21.7, respectively). Additionally, a group of counselors was identified for whom the first stage of the study coincided with their first shift in life or the first shift after a long vacation. The average values in this sample at the first, second and third stages were distributed as follows: "emotional exhaustion" (18; 17.4; 24.8, respectively), "depersonalization" (4.8; 5.2; 8.6; respectively), "reduction of professionalism" (inverted scale: 35.8; 37.6; 33.7, respectively), and the scale of "neuropsychic adaptation" (21.6; 21.5; 25.5, respectively).

As a result of the analysis of variance with repeated measurements of emotional burnout and neuropsychic adaptation of counselors during 3 shifts, statistically significant differences were found in the following indicators: the level of emotional exhaustion, the level of depersonalization and the integral burnout index were significantly higher on the third shift, compared with the first and second shifts (p ≤0.001, p ≤0.05; p ≤0.001; p ≤0.01; p ≤0.001, p ≤0.05, respectively). The indicators of professionalism reduction are significantly higher on the first shift than on the third (p ≤0.05). There were no statistically significant differences in the indicators of neuropsychiatric adaptation at different stages (see table 1).

Table 1. Changing levels EV and NPA of counselors for 3 shifts (p ≤0.001*, p ≤0.01**; p ≤0.05***).

As a result of the analysis of variance with repeated measurements of emotional burnout and neuropsychic adaptation of counselors, for whom the first diagnosis coincided with their first shift in life, or the first shift after a long vacation, statistically significant differences were found in the following indicators: the level of emotional exhaustion, the level of depersonalization and the integral burnout index were significantly higher on the third shift, compared with the first and second shifts (p ≤0.001, p ≤0.01; p ≤0.001; p ≤0.05; p ≤0.001, p ≤0.01, respectively). The indicators on the scale of "reduction of professionalism" are significantly higher on the first and second shifts than on the third (p ≤0.05, p ≤ 0.05, respectively), which means that self-satisfaction as a professional decreases on the third shift. The level of neuropsychiatric maladjustment is also statistically significantly higher on the third shift than on the first (p ≤0.05) (see Table 2). These results may indicate the accumulation of fatigue and the appearance of more symptoms of neuropsychiatric maladjustment, as well as symptoms of burnout in the process of working as a counselor.

Table 2. Changes in the levels of EV and NPA of counselors for whom the first diagnosis coincided with their first shift in life, or the first shift after vacation (p ≤0.001*, p ≤0.01**; p ≤0.05***)

In other words, in the general sample of counselors, emotional exhaustion, manifested in the experience of emotional overstrain and emptiness and depersonalization, characterized as detachment, formal performance of professional duties and the integral burnout index increases on the third shift. The degree of self-satisfaction as a professional also decreases on the third shift. These results confirm the study by Bailey, A. and co-authors on the increase in the level of EV during work in the camp and contradict the results of Zachary, W.A. and co-authors, which states the opposite.

In the sample of counselors for whom the first stage of the study coincided with their first work shift in life or the first shift after a long break, as well as in the sample as a whole, emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, integral burnout index and the level of neuropsychiatric maladjustment increase on the third shift. The indicators on the scale of "reduction of professionalism" also decrease on the third shift.

At the same time, the following results are noteworthy: in the sample of counselors for whom the first stage of the study coincided with their first work shift in life or the first shift after a long break, the level of neuropsychiatric maladjustment increases, in contrast to the sample of counselors in the general population. Therefore, in addition, a statistical analysis was conducted of the differences in indicators of neuropsychic adaptation and emotional burnout in counselors for whom the first stage of the study coincided with their first work shift in life or the first shift after a long break (group 1) and counselors for whom the first stage of the study did not coincide with their first shift (group 2).

As a result of the comparative analysis, it was revealed that the counselors of group 1, at the third stage of the study, had a statistically significantly higher level of emotional exhaustion and neuropsychiatric maladjustment (p ≤0.05, p ≤0.01, respectively), (see Table 3, Figure 1) compared with group 2. Statistically significant differences in the level of nervous-there was no mental maladjustment and no indicators of emotional burnout at other stages of the study.

Table 3. Comparative analysis of the level of NPA and EV in counselors of group 1 and counselors of group 2 (p ≤0.01*; p ≤0.05**).

Figure 1. Comparative analysis of the level of NPA and EV in counselors of group 1 and counselors of group 2.

Discussion of the results

The study examined the change in indicators of emotional burnout and the level of neuropsychiatric maladjustment in counselors at different stages (shifts) during the work process. As a result of the statistical analysis, it was revealed that the indicators of emotional burnout in the general sample of counselors increase by the last stage (camp shift), which is consistent with the results of some previous studies (Ko et al., 2012; Baily et al., 2012), but in some ways contradicts the study (Zachary W.A. 2017). An increase in the indicators of emotional burnout may indicate not only the formation of this phenomenon, but also the accumulation of fatigue. It is interesting to note that in the group of counselors for whom the first stage of testing coincided with the first shift in life or the first shift after a long break, not only the indicators of emotional burnout increase, but also the level of neuropsychic maladjustment (which does not occur in the general sample). A comparative analysis of the level of neuropsychiatric maladjustment and emotional burnout among counselors with different duration of work in the camp showed that, indeed, counselors who were working for the first time at the time of the first stage of the study had significantly higher rates of emotional exhaustion and neuropsychiatric maladjustment than counselors who have been working for a long time. This may probably be due to the fact that those counselors who are able to withstand stress for a longer time and have a higher level of stress resistance remain working. There may be other reasons for the observed differences, which cannot be considered in this study due to limited data. For example, organizational ones – counselors who have already worked two shifts may have more pressure from the administration than those who have just started working and those who have been working for a long time. In further research, it is of particular interest to study the factors that prevent the development of emotional burnout and factors that contribute to successful adaptation.

Conclusions

1. Dynamics of the level of emotional burnout:

During three shifts, there were statistically significant differences in the level of emotional exhaustion and depersonalization among counselors. These indicators are significantly higher on the third shift compared to the first and second. At the first shift, the level of reduction in the professionalism of counselors is higher than at the third, which indicates a decrease in self-satisfaction during the work process. These results confirm the hypothesis of the formation of emotional burnout in the process of working as a counselor.

2. Dynamics of the level of neuropsychiatric maladjustment:

In the general sample of counselors, there are no statistically significant differences in the indicators of neuropsychiatric adaptation at different stages of the study. In the group of counselors, where the first shift coincided with the beginning of the study, this level was significantly higher at the third stage of the study compared to the group of counselors who have been working for a long time. These results only partially confirm the hypothesis of an increase in the level of maladaptation among counselors in the course of their work.

3. Comparison of groups of counselors with different work durations:

In the group of counselors, where the first stage coincided with the first shift, compared with the other group, where the first stage of the study did not coincide with the first shift, higher levels of emotional exhaustion and neuropsychic maladjustment are observed, which may indicate, on the one hand, the successful adaptation of those who have been working for a long time and, in general, about a longer adaptation process. On the other hand, it can be assumed that those counselors who experience a high level of maladjustment and burnout do not stay to work for a long time.

In general, the results of the study indicate an increase in emotional burnout and neuropsychiatric maladjustment among counselors during work, especially on the third shift.

Limitations

This study has a number of limitations. Firstly, the limitations are associated with a small set of diagnostic tools. Secondly, the article does not consider the causes of the increase in neuropsychiatric maladjustment and emotional burnout, which, on the other hand, opens up prospects for further research.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it can be noted that the problem of emotional burnout of counselors in children's camps remains poorly studied in both domestic and foreign literature. The results presented in the study confirm the existence of this problem and indicate the need for further study.

The findings of the study show that the level of emotional burnout increases significantly during the work of a counselor, especially on the third shift, which indicates the formation of this condition during the working period. An interesting result is the identification of differences between groups of counselors with different work durations. Counselors with longer experience may be more successful in adapting to work conditions, but they are also at risk of emotional burnout.

Thus, the results of the study indicate the importance of studying the psychological well-being of counselors in children's camps and the need to develop programs to support and prevent emotional burnout in this professional group. These results may be of interest to a wide range of readers, both scientifically and from a practical point of view. Further research in this area can help develop more effective strategies to support and ensure the long-term well-being of counselors.

Gratitude

The author expresses gratitude to the psychological service of the international children's center "Artek" and personally to the head of the research department of the Department of Psychological support of the Iac Diana Vladimirovna for her help in conducting the diagnosis of counselors for this study.