Advisor Information
Jeff French
Location
UNO Criss Library, Room 249
Presentation Type
Oral Presentation
Start Date
3-3-2017 1:15 PM
End Date
3-3-2017 1:30 PM
Abstract
Mental health professionals are at increased risk for burnout, compassion fatigue, and reduced compassion satisfaction. Burnout is characterized by emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and loss of personal accomplishment. Compassion fatigue is a more progressed disruption relative to burnout marked by insomnia/nightmares, arousal, loss of objectivity, isolation, and intrusive thoughts. Compassion satisfaction buffers against burnout and compassion fatigue. Although links between demographic, psychological, and biological factors have been documented, interactions between these factors have not been explored. Mental health professionals completed psychological inventories measuring depression, anxiety, burnout, compassion fatigue, and compassion satisfaction. Saliva samples were collected during the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) in order to examine sympathetic nervous system (measured by alpha amylase [sAA]) and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis (measured by cortisol [CORT]) functioning. Higher depression symptoms predicted increased emotional exhaustion, whereas anxiety predicted higher scores on all burnout subscales. Compassion fatigue was correlated with emotional exhaustion and depression, whereas reduced compassion satisfaction was predicted by increased depersonalization and anxiety. sAA levels were not associated with depression/anxiety, burnout, or compassion fatigue. However, professionals with higher burnout and low depression showed increased CORT reactivity, whereas those with higher burnout coupled with high depression showed a blunted CORT response to a stressor. A similar pattern was observed for the interaction between anxiety and depersonalization, and for depression and compassion fatigue. These findings suggest that individual symptom patterns should be considered when addressing psychological distress associated with secondary trauma exposure. Additionally, depression and anxiety influence burnout-related HPA axis, but not sympathetic nervous system, dysregulation.
Neuroendocrine and psychological factors associated with burnout, compassion fatigue, and reduced compassion satisfaction in mental health professionals
UNO Criss Library, Room 249
Mental health professionals are at increased risk for burnout, compassion fatigue, and reduced compassion satisfaction. Burnout is characterized by emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and loss of personal accomplishment. Compassion fatigue is a more progressed disruption relative to burnout marked by insomnia/nightmares, arousal, loss of objectivity, isolation, and intrusive thoughts. Compassion satisfaction buffers against burnout and compassion fatigue. Although links between demographic, psychological, and biological factors have been documented, interactions between these factors have not been explored. Mental health professionals completed psychological inventories measuring depression, anxiety, burnout, compassion fatigue, and compassion satisfaction. Saliva samples were collected during the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) in order to examine sympathetic nervous system (measured by alpha amylase [sAA]) and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis (measured by cortisol [CORT]) functioning. Higher depression symptoms predicted increased emotional exhaustion, whereas anxiety predicted higher scores on all burnout subscales. Compassion fatigue was correlated with emotional exhaustion and depression, whereas reduced compassion satisfaction was predicted by increased depersonalization and anxiety. sAA levels were not associated with depression/anxiety, burnout, or compassion fatigue. However, professionals with higher burnout and low depression showed increased CORT reactivity, whereas those with higher burnout coupled with high depression showed a blunted CORT response to a stressor. A similar pattern was observed for the interaction between anxiety and depersonalization, and for depression and compassion fatigue. These findings suggest that individual symptom patterns should be considered when addressing psychological distress associated with secondary trauma exposure. Additionally, depression and anxiety influence burnout-related HPA axis, but not sympathetic nervous system, dysregulation.