Stress,Burnout and Self-Efficacy in Guidance Officers

Abstract

Over the last decade, Australian Guidance Officers have been facing well documented challenges to their roles, training and their profession. This study surveyed 146 Guidance Officers and found them to report abnormally high stress levels but average burnout and self-efficacy scores. Previous research suggests that the most difficult aspect of the Guidance Officer's role, and the job for which they often feel least prepared, is dealing with the support needs of students with mental illness, emotional disturbance, behavioural and learning difficulties. Responses from Guidance Officers who deal with these students relatively often revealed significantly higher self-efficacy scores than the remainder of the group, higher emotional exhaustion (as anticipated) and reassuringly low depersonalisation scores. The good and bad news in these results are discussed and implications drawn for the profession.