Doctor of Philosophy, University of Akron, 2024, Counseling Psychology
Health service psychology (HSP) students are at a high risk of burnout and
physical and mental health problems (El-Ghoroury et al., 2011; Rummell, 2015).
Research has begun to explore environmental factors within training programs that cause
or prevent burnout (e.g., Kovach Clark et al., 2009; Swords & Ellis, 2017). Using the Job
Demands-Resources (JD-R) model of burnout (Bakker & Demerouti, 2017; Demerouti et
al., 2001), the present study assessed the relationships between demands, resources, and
burnout symptoms in a sample of HSP doctoral students. Structural equation modeling
was used to test the JD-R model and compare the relative contributions of perceived
workload, weekly work hours, sense of community, work environment, and relationships
with academic advisors and clinical supervisors to students' symptoms of exhaustion and
disengagement. Analyses of variance were used to explore demographic group
differences to better understand the experiences of diverse students, especially those with
minoritized identities.
Participants reported high levels of burnout symptoms, especially exhaustion. The
hypothesized JD-R model, which contains unique and separate pathways representing the
processes by which job demands sap energy and job resources promote engagement, did
not yield interpretable parameters and thus was not a good fit to the data. However, an
alternative model containing additional pathways between job demands and resources
and burnout symptoms fit the data well and collectively predicted about half (50.8%) the
variance in exhaustion and about a third (31.8%) of the variance in disengagement. The
results demonstrated HSP doctoral students' experiences of burnout are highly linked to
environmental factors. High demands impair students' health and create exhaustion,
while lacking resources impair motivation and create disengagement. Perceived
workload, sense of community, and the work environment had the largest effects on
burnout sym (open full item for complete abstract)
Committee: Margo Gregor (Advisor); Joelle Elicker (Committee Member); Ingrid Weigold (Committee Member); Varunee Faii Sangganjanavanich (Committee Member); John Queener (Committee Member)
Subjects: Clinical Psychology; Counseling Psychology; Education; Health Sciences; Multicultural Education; Occupational Health; Psychology; School Counseling