Burnout during a long-term rehabilitation: comparing low burnout, high burnout – benefited, and high burnout – not benefited trajectories

Abstract

To focus rehabilitation activities among burnout clients more effectively, it is important to investigate who benefits from burnout interventions. This study (N=85) aimed at identifying burnout trajectories in terms of benefit, that is, subgroups of clients who share similar mean levels and changes in burnout during a one-year rehabilitation intervention (17 days in total) with a six-month follow-up. After identifying the burnout trajectories, the relations of the trajectories with factors describing the clients, antecedents, and consequences of burnout during the one-year intervention were examined. Three burnout trajectories were identified by growth mixture modeling: (a) low burnout (n=39), (b) high burnout - benefited (n=29), and (c) high burnout - not benefited (n=17). Positive changes were detected in antecedents and consequences among the clients in the low burnout and high burnout - benefited trajectories. Recovery from burnout was associated with increased job resources and decreased job demands, as well as with increased job satisfaction and decreased depression. It seems that more precise targeting of rehabilitation is needed since the trajectories revealed not only clients with mild symptoms, but also clients who probably received this treatment too late.