The impact of interpersonal environment on burnout and organizational commitment

TLDR

The study examined nurses’ interpersonal relationships in a small general hospital, categorizing regular communication contacts as supervisor or coworker and further distinguishing them as pleasant or unpleasant. Results showed that emotional exhaustion drives depersonalization and reduced personal accomplishment, with pleasant and unpleasant supervisor and coworker contacts differentially influencing each burnout dimension, and that higher burnout was linked to lower organizational commitment, all within a broader framework of workplace psychological adjustment.

Abstract

Abstract Organizational commitment and burnout were related to interpersonal relationships of nurses in a small general hospital. Regular communication contacts among personnel were differentiated as supervisor or coworker contact, and these categories were further differentiated into pleasant and unpleasant contacts. The results were consistent with a view of burnout in which emotional exhaustion leads to greater depersonalization which subsequently leads to diminished personal accomplishment. Interpersonal contact with personnel in the organization was related to the development of burnout at each stage. Patterns of pleasant and unpleasant contacts with supervisors and coworkers were related to the three aspects of burnout in a distinct manner. High burnout was related to diminished organizational commitment, which was also related to aspects of the interpersonal environment of the organization. The results are discussed in the context of a comprehensive approach to psychological adjustment to a worksetting.