Work-life interaction and burnout: a national study

Abstract

Introduction: Professional and personal lives are fundamental to an individual’s functioning, being critical that they interact harmoniously. Burnout syndrome is a clinical condition that develops under continuous exposure to stress and overload, therefore it is important to understand how work-life interaction (WLI) practices are related to burnout and how both constructs differ according to sociodemographics. Objective: To study the relationship between work-life bidirectional interaction and burnout in workers and the association of these constructs with sociodemographic characteristics, aiming to identify the role of organizations in these relationships. Methods: Exploratory, quantitative, and descriptive cross-sectional study conducted on a sample of 255 Portuguese working individuals. Data was collected through the Survey Work-Home Interaction NijmenGens (SWING), the Maslach Burnout Inventory General Survey (MBI-GS), and sociodemographic questionnaire and analyzed through t-test, ANOVA, correlation, and multiple linear regression procedures. Results: The general results show that negative work-life and life-work interactions were found as burnout predictors. Work-life interaction and burnout showed significant differences between groups according to gender, age, marital status, number of children, career length, time in the organization, working student, and legal relationship. Conclusion: For the individual’s work functioning and well-being, work-life interaction patterns are worthwhile for organizations to manage well. Practical implications are suggested.

Keywords

• work-life interaction; burnout; sociodemographics; well-being