“Burnout” and how to fight
with that
“No More Victims”
Conference
March 2011
Presented by
Dr Jo Clarke
Consultant Forensic Psychologist
University of York
Setting the Scent: Pt 1
A Critical Occupation
One where there is a high risk of exposure to
potentially traumatic events or material,
that may, under certain circumstances, exert
critical impact on the psychological well
being of those within it
Paton & Violanti, 1996
What the early literature told us
• Consistently across studies between a fifth
and a quarter of facilitators report negative
effects (e.g. Farrenkopf, 1992;), broadly
divided into:
–
–
–
–
Cognitive
Emotional
Behavioural
Sexual
Examples of Cognitive
Changes
• Increased difficulty making decisions (Bird
Edmunds, 1997)
• Intrusive visual imagery about sexual
violence (Jackson et al., 1997)
• Ruminating over offence details (Turner,
1993)
• Doubts about competence (Ellerby et. al.,
1993)
• Increased cynicism and suspicion of others
(Farrenkopf, 1992)
Examples of Emotional
Changes
• Decreased sensitivity and dulling of
emotion (Farrenkopf, 1992)
• Feelings of anger, frustration,
disillusionment, depression, inadequacy
and guilt (Ellerby et al., 1993)
• Heightened anxiety and fear (Jackson et
al., 1993)
• Increased feelings of helplessness (Bird
Edmunds, 1997)
Examples of Behavioural
Changes
• Sleep disturbance,increased alcohol/drug
use, increased absenteeism (Bird
Edmunds, 1997)
• Deceased sense of humour (Farrenkopf,
1992)
• Avoidance of physical contact with children
(Turner, 1993)
• Increased general irritability (Bird
Edmunds, 1997)
• Depersonalising clients (Hill, 1995)
Examples of Changes in
Sexual Behaviour
•
•
•
•
Reduced interest in sex
Reduction in sexual behaviour
Avoidance of sexual behaviour
Distraction during sex
(Ellerby et al., 1993)
• Impotence
• Intrusive sexual imagery
(Turner, 1993)
Shortcomings of what we know
•
Symptoms made to fit existing conceptualisations
–
–
–
–
•
Burnout (e.g. Farrenkopf, 1992)
Secondary Traumatic Stress (e.g. Ellerby)
Vicarious Trauma (Rich, 1997)
Compassion Fatigue (e.g. Figley, 1995)
Based on poorly constructed and/or non-validated
and/or general measures
• Most commonly used is the Maslach Burnout Inventory
(MBI – Maslach and Jackson, 1981)
• 3 dimensions
– Emotional Exhaustion
– Depersonalisation
– Reduced personal accomplishment
Shortcomings of Literature
(cont’d)
•
•
•
•
Based on cross sectional methodology
Over reliance on self-report
Studies are generally descriptive
Assumption that effects should be
attributed to nature of material
• No comparison with other mental
health professionals
Setting the Scene: Pt 2
Caring about members of Critical
Occupations means working to
ensure that “any damage is only
temporary, and that they will
succeed in their struggle to restore
their psychological integrity”
Adapted from
Lazarus
(1999)
The Rewards
• Kadambi and Truscott, 2003
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Protection of the public
Offender change and wellness
Connection to colleagues
Enjoyment of counselling
Offender specific change
Socially meaningful curiosity
Professional benefits
Working with the Sex
Offenders: The Impact
Statistics
About a quarter of people in Critical
Occupations experience negative impact (that
they attribute to their work) at any given time.
• About 75% don’t
• People don’t feel bad
all of the time
• Probably, over time,
all of us experience
some sort of negative impact
MOST OF US RECOVER!
Model of Dynamic Adaptation (Clarke 2004)
Positive
Psychological
Outcome
Static Factors
Critical
Occupation
The Person
Negative
Psychological
Outcome
Stable Factors
Dynamic
Factors
About the Factors
• Static Factors
– Factors that are fixed or unchanging or change in a
highly predictable way, e.g. gender, qualifications, age
• Stable Factors
– Factors that are potentially changeable but relatively
stable; factors that under normal circumstances only
change slowly, e.g. coping style, perspective taking
skills
• Dynamic Factors
– Factors that change rapidly and/or unpredictably,
e.g. changes in organisational structure, events not
under personal control (accident)
About the factors
• Critical Occupation
– This includes all the “on-the-job” type factors, such as
types of unit/prisoners, colleague relationships, policies
and procedures
• Positive Psychological Outcome
– Anything rewarding about the job, from working with a
great team, to a previously highly aggressive prisoner
getting through the day without hitting anyone!
• Negative Psychological Outcome
– Any cost, such as feeling irritable, tired, suspicious of
others, anxious when alone, anxious around others etc
The Model of Dynamic Adaptation (Clarke, 2004)
POSITIVE OUTCOME
STATIC FACTORS
Age
Gender
Time in Role
Ever a victim
Living status
Parent
Facilitator Status
The Person
CRITICAL OCCUPATION
Colleagues
Environment
Funding
Resources
Organisational
policies, practices
and culture
STABLE FACTORS
Coping style
Perspective taking
Emotion control
Emotional sensitivity
Social Support
Skills - Modelling
Personal
trauma
Health
Family
Management
DYNAMIC FACTORS
Protection of the public
Offender change and wellness
Connection to colleagues
Enjoyment of counselling
Offender specific change
Socially meaningful curiosity
Professional benefits
NEGATIVE OUTCOME
Disrupted schema
Intrusive imagery
Rumination
Difficulty making decisions
Heightened fear and anxiety
Feelings of anger, guilt,
frustration,
disillusionment, depression,
inadequacy
Decreased sensitivity and
dulling of emotion…
Hot off the Press
• The 3 most important MDA factors
associated with resilience are:• Age (static)
• Organisational Culture (dynamic/critical
occupation)
• Detached Coping (stable)
Fox & Clarke, 2010
Model of Dynamic Adaptation (Clarke 2004)
Intervention 2
Positive
Psychological
Outcome
Static Factors
Critical
Occupation
Negative
Psychological
Outcome
Stable Factors
Dynamic
Factors
Intervention 1
Intervention 3
Intervention 4
Future Research?
• Determine predictors of resilience and job
satisfaction among European Union member states
probation officers
• Identify good organizational practice in minimizing
risk of negative outcome and maximizing likelihood
of positive outcome for EU probation staff
• Develop a more detailed understanding of
organisational culture and the impact of individual
differences
• Evaluate of a range of interventions, including
training in detachment (Roger, 2004)
• Implement a longitudinal study to develop a better
understanding of the Process of Dynamic
Adaptation