In the helping professions, professional burnout is widely acknowledged to play a key role in work retention and turnover. However, although the literature on fieldwork education in social work engages with the importance of continuity and commitment regarding the role of fieldwork supervisor, the effects of job burnout are under-researched. Furthermore, there is also a gap in the literature with respect to the internal factors that contextualize burnout and retention among fieldwork supervisors. Against this background, the objective of the present study was to examine the factors that predict professional burnout among fieldwork supervisors in Israel. Questionnaires measuring burnout, as well as several internal explanatory factors for burnout—career identity, work significance, and personality traits—were used.
Findings
The findings of the study indicated that career identity, together with the personality characteristics of agreeableness and consciousness predict burnout negatively, while neuroticism positively predicts burnout.
Applications
The article discusses these findings in light of resource conservation and existential theories of burnout, as well as the potential implications for practice and policy.
AshforthB. E.SchinoffB. S. (2016).
Identity under construction: How individuals come to define themselves in organizations. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior,
3, 111–137. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-041015-062322
2.
BakkerA. B.Van Der ZeeK. I.LewigK. A.DollardM. F. (2006).
The relationship between the big five personality factors and burnout: A study among volunteer counselors.The Journal of Social Psychology,
146(1), 31–50. https://doi.org/10.3200/SOCP.146.1.31-50
3.
BeckerE. (2007). The denial of death.
Simon and Schuster.
4.
BennettL.CoeS. (1998).
Social work field instructor satisfaction with faculty field liaisons. Journal of Social Work Education,
34(3), 345–352. https://doi.org/10.1080/10437797.1998.10778930
5.
BeringsD.De FruytF.BouwenR. (2004).
Work values and personality traits as predictors of enterprising and social vocational interests. Personality and Individual Differences,
36(2), 349–364. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0191-8869(03)00101-6
6.
BogoM. (2006).
Field instruction in social work: A review of the research literature.The Clinical Supervisor,
24(1–2), 163–193. https://doi.org/10.1300/J001v24n01_09
7.
BogoM.PowerR. (1992).
New field instructors’ perceptions of institutional supports for their roles. Journal of Social Work Education,
28(2), 178–189. https://doi.org/10.1080/10437797.1992.10778771
8.
BoyasJ.WindL. H.KangS. Y. (2012).
Exploring the relationship between employment-based social capital, job stress, burnout, and intent to leave among child protection workers: An age-based path analysis model. Children and Youth Services Review,
34(1), 50–62. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2011.08.033
9.
CiavarellaM. A.BuchholtzA. K.RiordanC. M.GatewoodR. D.StokesG.S. (2004).
The Big Five and venture survival: Is there a linkage?Journal of Business Venturing,
19(4), 465–483. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2003.03.001
CostaP. T.Jr.TerraccianoA.McCraeR. R. (2001).
Gender differences in personality traits across cultures: Robust and surprising findings. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology,
81(2), 322–331. https://psycnet.apa.org/doi/10.1037/0022-3514.81.2.322
12.
DearyI. J.WatsonR.HogstonR. (2003).
A longitudinal cohort study of burnout and attrition in nursing students. Journal of Advanced Nursing,
43, 71–81. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2648.2003.02674.x
13.
EdwardsH.DiretteD. (2010).
The relationship between professional identity and burnout among occupational therapists. Occupational Therapy in Health Care,
24(2), 119–129. https://doi.org/10.3109/07380570903329610
14.
EtzionD.LaskiS. (1998). The Big Five Inventory (version 5a).
Tel-Aviv University.
15.
FreundA.GuezG. (2018).
Intentions to leave supervision among social work supervisors: Contributing factors.Social Work Education,
37(4), 458–471. https://doi.org/10.1080/02615479.2017.1422487
16.
GlobermanJ.BogoM. (2003).
Changing times: Understanding social workers' motivation to be field instructors. Social Work,
48(1), 65–73. https://doi.org/10.1093/sw/48.1.65
17.
GuptaA.ChongS.LeongF. T. (2015).
Development and validation of the vocational identity measure. Journal of Career Assessment,
23(1), 79–90. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F1069072714523088
HaslamS. A.JettenJ.PostmesT.HaslamC. (2009).
Social identity, health and well-being: An emerging agenda for applied psychology. Applied Psychology,
58(1), 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1464-0597.2008.00379.x
20.
HeppnerP. P.CookS. W.WrightD. M.JohnsonW. C.Jr.(1995).
Progress in resolving problems: A problem-focused style of coping. Journal of Counseling Psychology,
42, 279–293. https://psycnet.apa.org/doi/10.1037/0022-0167.42.3.279
HobfollS. E.FreedyJ. (1993). Conservation of resources: A general stress theory applied to burnout. In W. B. Schaufeli, C. Maslach & T. Marek (Eds), Series in applied psychology: Social issues and questions. Professional burnout: Recent developments in theory and research (pp. 115–133). Taylor Francis. https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1993-97794-007
23.
IbarraH.BarbulescuR. (2010).
Identity as narrative: Prevalence, effectiveness, and consequences of narrative identity work in macro work role transitions.Academy of Management Review,
35(1), 135–154. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.35.1.zok135
24.
JacobsonJ. M.RothschildA.MirzaF.ShapiroM. (2013).
Risk for burnout and compassion fatigue and potential for compassion satisfaction among clergy: Implications for social work and religious organizations. Journal of Social Service Research,
39(4), 455–468. https://doi.org/10.1080/01488376.2012.744627
25.
JohnO. P.SrivastavaS. (1999). The Big Five trait taxonomy: History, measurement, and theoretical perspectives. In L. A. Pervin & O. P. John (Eds), Handbook of personality theory and research (Vol.
2, pp. 102–138). The Guilford Press.
KetnerM.Cooper-BolinskeyD.VanCleaveD. (2017).
The meaning and value of supervision in social work field education. Field Educator,
7(2) 1–18. http://www2.simmons.edu/ssw/fe/i/17-175.pdf
29.
KimH.StonerM. (2008).
Burnout and turnover intention among social workers: Effects of role stress, job autonomy and social support. Administration in Social Work,
32(3), 5–25. https://doi.org/10.1080/03643100801922357
KnightC. (2010).
Indirect trauma in the field practicum: Secondary traumatic stress, vicarious trauma, and compassion fatigue among social work students and their field instructors. Journal of Baccalaureate Social Work,
15(1), 31–52. https://www.jbsw.org/doi/abs/10.5555/basw.15.1.l568283x21397357
32.
Korazim-KὅrösyY. (2010). Social work school survey.
The Israeli Ministry of Welfare and Social Services.
LapointeÉ.VandenbergheC.PanaccioA. (2011).
Organizational commitment, organization-based self-esteem, emotional exhaustion and turnover: A conservation of resources perspective. Human Relations,
64(12), 1609–1631. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0018726711424229
35.
McCarthyB. (2003).
The impact of the entrepreneur's personality on the strategy-formation and planning process in SMEs. Irish Journal of Management,
24(1), 154–172.
36.
Malach-PinesA.Kaspi-BaruchO. (2008).
The role of culture and gender in the choice of a career in management. Career Development International,
13(4), 306–319. https://doi.org/10.1108/13620430810880808
37.
MaslachC.JacksonS. E.LeiterM. P. (1996). Maslach burnout inventory manual (3rd ed.).
Consulting Psychologists Press Inc.
NobleC.IrwinJ. (2009).
Social work supervision: An exploration of the current challenges in a rapidly changing social, economic and political environment. Journal of Social Work,
9(3), 345–358. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F1468017309334848
41.
Peleg-OrenN.Even-ZahavR. (2004).
Why do field supervisors drop out of student supervision?The Clinical Supervisor,
23(2), 15–30. https://doi.org/10.1300/J001v23n02_02
42.
Peleg-OrenN.MacgowanM. J.Even-ZahavR. (2007).
Field instructors' commitment to student supervision: Testing the investment model. Social Work Education,
26(7), 684–696. https://doi.org/10.1080/02615470601129875
ReischM.Jarman-RohdeL. (2000).
The future of social work in the United States: Implications for field education. Journal of Social Work Education,
36(2), 201–214. https://doi.org/10.1080/10437797.2000.10779002
46.
Rosenthal GelmanC. (2011).
Field instructors' perspectives on foundation year MSW student's' preplacement anxiety. Journal of Teaching in Social Work,
31(3), 295–312. https://doi.org/10.1080/08841233.2011.580252
47.
ScanlonL. (2011). ‘Becoming’ a professional. In L. Scanlon (Ed.), “Becoming” a professional (pp. 13–32). Springer.
48.
SchiffM.KatzK. (2007).
The impact of ethnicity and phase in training on Israeli social work students' satisfaction with the field instruction. Social Work Education,
26(8), 794–809. https://doi.org/10.1080/02615470601140526
49.
ScholarH.McLaughlinH.McCaughanS.ColemanA. (2014).
Learning to be a social worker in a non-traditional placement: Critical reflections on social work, professional identity and social work education in England. Social Work Education,
33(8), 998–1016. https://doi.org/10.1080/02615479.2014.926320
50.
ShlomoS. B.LevyD.ItzhakyH. (2012).
Development of professional identity among social work students: Contributing factors. The Clinical Supervisor,
31(2), 240–255. https://doi.org/10.1080/07325223.2013.733305
51.
StreetL. A. (2019).
Field instructor perspectives on challenging behaviors in social work practicum.Field Educator,
9(1), 1–21. www2.simmons.edu/ssw/fe/i/18-213.pdf
TravisD. J.LizanoE. L.Mor BarakM. E. (2016).
‘I'm so stressed!’: A longitudinal model of stress, burnout and engagement among social workers in child welfare settings. The British Journal of Social Work,
46(4), 1076–1095. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bct205
54.
TurnerJ. C. (2010). Social categorization and the self-concept: A social cognitive theory of group behavior. In T. Postmes & N. R. Branscombe (Eds), Key readings in social psychology: Rediscovering social identity (pp. 243–272). Psychology Press.
55.
WagamanM. A.GeigerJ. M.ShockleyC.SegalE. A. (2015).
The role of empathy in burnout, compassion satisfaction, and secondary traumatic stress among social workers.Social Work,
60(3), 201–209. https://doi.org/10.1093/sw/swv014
56.
WatsonD.HubbardB. (1996).
Adaptational style and dispositional structure: Coping in the context of the five-factor model. Journal of Personality,
64, 737–774. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6494.1996.tb00943.x
57.
WayneJ.BogoM.RaskinM. (2006).
Field notes: The need for radical change in field education. Journal of Social Work Education,
42(1), 161–169. https://doi.org/10.5175/JSWE.2006.200400447
58.
WiebeM. (2010).
Pushing the boundaries of the social work practicum: Rethinking sites and supervision toward radical practice. Journal of Progressive Human Services,
21, 66–82. https://doi.org/10.1080/10428231003782517
59.
WoodheadE. L.NorthropL.EdelsteinB. (2016).
Stress, social support, and burnout among long-term care nursing staff. Journal of Applied Gerontology,
35(1), 84–105. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0733464814542465
60.
ZuckermanR. L.LevineA. S.FreyJ. J. (2017).
Enhancing partnerships with field instructors: Identifying effective retention strategies. Field Educator,
7(1), 1–13. https://www2.simmons.edu/ssw/fe/i/17-162.pdf
