Effort–reward imbalance and burnout among humanitarian aid workers

Abstract

This study sought to examine stress-related working conditions—defined in terms of effort–reward imbalance (ERI)—and their association with burnout among a large, international sample of humanitarian aid workers. Descriptive statistics were applied to cross-sectional survey data (N=1,980) to profile ERI and burnout and Pearson's χ2 tests were used to characterise associated socio- and occupational-demographic factors. Associations between ERI and burnout were established using binary logistic regression to generate odds ratios and 95 per cent confidence intervals adjusted for potential confounding variables. For high emotional exhaustion, the prevalence rate was 36 per cent for women and 27 per cent for men, whereas the proportions for high depersonalisation and low personal achievement were 9 and 10 per cent and 47 and 31 per cent, respectively. Intermediate and high ERI was associated with significantly increased odds of high emotional exhaustion; the findings were mixed for depersonalisation and personal achievement.