Organizational Drivers of Burnout and Work Engagement: A Multilevel Study in Portuguese Firefighter Brigades

Abstract

In this study, we analyzed how organization-level demands and organizational-level social support relate to the core dimensions of burnout and work engagement, controlling for individual resources (i.e., proactive coping) and demands (i.e., acute demands) using the Job Demands-Resources Theory. In a sample of 1487 Portuguese firefighters nested within 70 fire brigades, hierarchical linear modeling indicated that: (1) proactive coping was related to lower burnout and higher work engagement, whereas acute demands were related to higher burnout and lower work engagement (for vigor only); (2) proactive coping moderated the relationship between acute demands and vigor; and (3) unexpectedly, social support from colleagues was not related to firefighters’ well-being, whereas organization-level demands were related to higher burnout and lower work engagement. These results suggest the need to implement practices and policies to guarantee the relevant conditions for improving the well-being of firefighters, to develop coping strategies in a proactive way, and finally, to enhance support from colleagues.