Communal Orientation May Not Buffer Burnout

Abstract

Communal orientation (a desire to give and receive benefits in response to the needs of and out of concern for others) has had a buffer effect on burnout, in particular when the helping relationship is perceived by the helper as inequitable. This result, however, comes from research involving a specific professional group, medical personnel, that is, a group with a medical helping model wherein recipients are neither held responsible for their problem nor for the solution. We hypothesized that among professional helpers with a compensatory model wherein recipients are not held responsible for their problem but for the solution, and who perceive the relationship as inequitable, not only will a communal orientation not have effect on burnout, but it will reduce personal accomplishment. We present some results supporting this hypothesis.