Distress and Burnout as Outcomes of Psychological Flexibility and Emotional Exhaustion among Healthcare Workers of COVID-19 Isolation Centers
Keywords:
Psychological Flexibility, Emotional Exhaustion, Burnout, Covid-19 Isolation Centres, Healthcare Worker.Abstract
Objective: To study distress and burnout as outcomes of psychological flexibility and emotional exhaustion among healthcare workers of COVID-19 isolation centres. Methodology: The study purposively selected a sample of 518 healthcare workers, including Doctors, Psychologists, Physiotherapists, Nurses, and Dispensers. A convenient sampling technique was used. The Acceptance and Action Questionnaire II (AAQ-II), Maslach Burnout Inventory -- Human Services Survey (HSS) Emotional exhaustion subscale (MHI-HSS-EE), and Distress and Burnout Symptom Checklist for Covid-19 Healthcare Workers were used to assess the study variables. Results: Pearson correlation indicated that psychological flexibility is significantly negatively correlated with emotional exhaustion and burnout. It also revealed that emotional exhaustion is positively correlated with burnout. Multiple regression analysis indicated that psychological flexibility negatively predicted distress and burnout, while emotional exhaustion positively predicted distress and burnout. Findings from ANOVA depicted the significant mean difference among types of healthcare workers on the study variables. Conclusion: Psychological flexibility was negatively linked with both exhaustion and burnout. Emotional exhaustion was positively linked with burnout. Moreover, burnout can be managed by having high psychological flexibility.
Downloads
References
Bond, F. W., & Bunce, D. (2003). The role of acceptance and job control in
mental health, job satisfaction, and work performance. Journal of Applied
Psychology, 88(6),1057 https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.88.6.1057
Bond, F. W., Hayes, S. C., Baer, R. A., Carpenter, K. M., Guenole, N., Orcutt, H.
K., ... & Zettle, R. D. (2011). Preliminary psychometric properties of the
Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II: A revised measure of
psychological inflexibility and experiential avoidance. Behavior
therapy,42(4),676-688. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beth.2011.03.007
Carfi, A., Bernabei, R., & Landi, F. (2020). Persistent symptoms in
patients after acute COVID-19. Jama, 324(6), 603-605.
https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2020.12603
Chang, W. H., Wu, C. H., Kuo, C. C., & Chen, L. H. (2018). The role of athletic
identity in the development of athlete burnout: The moderating role of
psychological flexibility. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 39, 45-51.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychsport.2018.07.014
Dawson, D. L., & Golijani-Moghaddam, N. (2020). COVID-19:
Psychological flexibility, coping, mental health, and well-being in
the UK during the pandemic. Journal of Contextual Behavioral
Science, 17, 126-134. https://doi.Org/10.1016/j.jcbs.2020.07.010
Fiabane, E., Gabanelli, P., La Rovere, M. T., Tremoli, E., Pistarini, C., &
Gorini, A. (2021). Psychological and work related factors
associated with emotional exhaustion among healthcare
professionals during the COVID 19 outbreak in Italian
hospitals. Nursing & Health Sciences, 23(3), 670-675.
https://doi.Org/10.l 111/nhs.12871
Haider, I. L, Tiwana, F., & Tahir, S. M. (2020). Impact of the COVID-19
Pandemic on Adult Mental Health. Pakistan Journal of Medical
Sciences, 36(COVID19-S4).
https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.36.covid19-S4.2756
Jalili, M., Niroomand, M., Hadavand, F., Zeinali, K., & Fotouhi, A. (2020).
Burnout among healthcare professionals during COVID-19
pandemic: a cross-sectional study. medRxiv.
https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.06.12.20129650
Kashdan, T. B., & Rottenberg, J. (2010). Psychological flexibility as a
fundamental aspect of health. Clinical Psychology Review, 30(7),
-878. https://doi.Org/10.1016/j.cpr.2010.03.001
Kline, R. B. (2023). Principles and practice of structural equation
modeling. Guilford publications.
Kowalski, C., Ommen, O., Driller, E., Ernstmann, N., Wirtz, M. A.,
Kohler, T., & Pfaff, H. (2010). Burnout in nurses-the relationship
between social capital in hospitals and emotional exhaustion.
Journal of Clinical nursing, 19(11 12), 1654-1663.
https://doi.0rg/lO.l11l/j.l365-2702.2009.02989.x
Kroska, E. B., Roche, A. L, Adamowicz, J. L., & Stegall, M. S. (2020).
Psychological flexibility in the context of COVID-19 adversity:
Associations with Distress. Journal of Contextual Behavioral
Science, 18, 28-33. https://doi.Org/10.1016/j.jcbs.2020.07.011
Maslach, C. (2007). Burnout. Encyclopedia of Stress, 2, 368-
https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-012373947-6.00062-3
Maslach, C., & Jackson, S. E. (1981). MBI: Maslach burnout
inventory. Palo Alto, CA, 1(2), 49-78.
Maslach, C., & Jackson, S. E. (1981). The measurement of experienced
burnout. Journal of organizational behavior, 2(2), 99-113.
https://doi.org/10.1002/job.4030020205
McCracken, L. M., & Yang, S.-Y. (2008). A contextual cognitivebehavioral analysis of rehabilitation workers' health and well-being:
Influences of acceptance, mindfulness, and values-based
action. Rehabilitation Psychology, 53(4), 479-
https://doi.org/10.1037/a0012854
Nevanpera, N., Lappalainen, R., Kuosma, E., Hopsu, L., Uitti, J., &
Laitinen, J. (2013). Psychological flexibility, occupational burnout
and eating behavior among working women. Open Journal of
Preventive Medicine, 3(4) https://doi.org/10.4236/ojpm.2013.34048
Northwood, K., Siskind, D., Suetani, S., & McArdle, P. A. (2021). An
assessment of psychological distress and professional burnout in
mental health professionals in Australia during the COVID-19
pandemic. Australasian Psychiatry,29(6), 628-634.
https://doi.org/10.1177/10398562211038906
Onwezen, M. C., Van Veldhoven, M. J. P. M., & Biron, M. (2014). The
role of psychological flexibility in the demands-exhaustionperformance relationship. European Journal of Work and
Organizational Psychology, 23(2), 163-176.
https://doi.org/10.1080/1359432X.2012.742242
Ruiz, F. J., & Odriozola-Gonzalez, P. (2017). The Predictive and
moderating role of psychological flexibility in the development of
job burnout. Universitas Psychologica, 16(4), 282-289.
https://doi.org/10.11144/javeriana.upsy16-4.pmrp
Society of Critical Care Medicine. (2020). Clinicians report high stress in
COVID-19 response.
Unadkat, S., & Farquhar, M. (2020). Doctors' well-being: self-care during
the covid-19 pandemic. BMJ, 368.
https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.m1150
Wright, T. A., & Cropanzano, R. (1998). Emotional exhaustion as a
predictor of job performance and voluntary turnover. Journal of
Applied Psychology, 83(3), 486-493. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.83.3.486
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
You are free to:
- Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format for any purpose, even commercially.
- Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially.
- The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms.
Under the following terms:
- Attribution — You must give appropriate credit , provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made . You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
- No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.
Notices:
You do not have to comply with the license for elements of the material in the public domain or where your use is permitted by an applicable exception or limitation .
No warranties are given. The license may not give you all of the permissions necessary for your intended use. For example, other rights such as publicity, privacy, or moral rights may limit how you use the material.
