Auditory deviance detection and involuntary attention allocation in occupational burnout—A follow-up study

Abstract

Here, we investigated the central auditory processing and attentional control associated with both recovery and prolongation of occupational burnout. We recorded the event-related brain potentials N1, P2, mismatch negativity (MMN) and P3a to nine changes in speech sounds and to three rarely presented emotional (happy, angry and sad) utterances from individuals with burnout (N = 16) and their matched controls (N = 12). After the 5 years follow-up, one control had acquired burnout, half (N = 8) of the burnout group had recovered, and the other half (prolonged burnout) still had burnout. The processing of acoustical changes in speech sounds was mainly intact. Prolongation of the burnout was associated with a decrease in MMN amplitude and an increase in P3a amplitude for the happy stimulus. The results suggest that, in the absence of interventions, burnout is a persistent condition, associated with alterations of attentional control, that may be amplified with the prolongation of the condition.