Burnout contagion processes among teachers

Abstract

This study of 154 Dutch high school teachers examined processes by which occupational burnout may transfer from one person to another. Two conditions that may increase the probability of burnout contagion were investigated; namely, individual teachers' susceptibility to emotional contagion, and the frequency with which teachers are exposed to colleagues with student-and work-related problems. Consistent with hypotheses derived from theories about emotional contagion, the results suggest that burnout contagion was most pronounced under these 2 high-risk conditions. Specifically, the prevalence of perceived burnout among participants' colleagues was most strongly related to individual teachers' burnout (i.e., emotional exhaustion and depersonalization), when the teachers were highly susceptible to the emotions of others and when they frequently communicated with each other about work-related problems.