The factorial validity of the Maslach Burnout Inventory‐General Survey (MBI‐GS) across occupational groups and nations

TLDR

The study examined the factorial validity of the Maslach Burnout Inventory‑General Survey (MBI‑GS) among employees of a multinational forest‑industry company. Data from 9,055 Finnish, Swedish, and Dutch employees across managers, clerks, foremen, technicians, and blue‑collar workers were used to test a three‑factor model of the MBI‑GS. The three‑factor MBI‑GS model fit the data better than one‑ or two‑factor alternatives, was invariant across occupational groups, had satisfactory internal consistency (except for cynicism), and revealed national and occupational differences in burnout levels, prompting the recommendation to drop an ambiguous cynicism item.

Abstract

The factorial validity of the Maslach Burnout Inventory‐General Survey (MBI‐GS) was investigated among employees of a multinational company in the forest industry. The present study includes data from Finnish, Swedish and Dutch employees (total N = 9055). The hypothesized three‐factor model of the MBI‐GS (Exhaustion, Cynicism, Professional Efficacy) was replicated across occupational groups (i.e. managers, clerks, foremen technicians, blue‐collar workers) and nations. The fit of this model to the data was superior to alternative one‐ and two‐factor models in all samples under investigation. In addition, the three‐factor structure of the MBI‐GS proved invariant across all occupational groups. The internal consistencies of the three subscales are satisfactory, except for the cynicism scale in some subsamples. Therefore, it is suggested to exclude one—ambiguous—cynicism item. Finally, some differences in levels of burnout are found between nations and occupational groups that are consistent with earlier findings.