Exploring intergenerational differences in burnout and how they relate to work engagement, norms, and values: a mixed-methods study

Abstract

BackgroundBurnout has been on the rise in recent years. Is this increasing prevalence due to changing working circumstances, or also to a changing societal context?AimThe aim of the study was to explore intergenerational differences in burnout.Design & settingThe study used a mixed quantitative and qualitative design, and tested the theory of the job demands–resources model (JD-RM). The target group of this research was the working population in Belgium, aged between 21–65 years. The study was performed in a public setting with people recruited through social media.MethodA quantitative web survey was distributed among the participants to explore the prevalence of burnout, work ethic, work engagement, and norms and values. The second part of the study used a focus group technique to explore in depth the eight statements that were formulated from the quantitative survey.ResultsA total of 309 people participated in the web survey and 21.5% met the criteria for 'burnout', while 22.6% scored high on the criteria for 'engagement'. It was found that 12.6% of all men and 3.0% of all women could not identify with the portrait of 'equivalence’. The value 'benevolence' was positively rated by 100%. In the youngest generation, 71.3 % identified with the portrait of ‘stimulation', while 70.8% of older men identified with the portrait ‘traditions’. The results also revealed that 43.1% of the younger generation agreed with the statement: 'I often think I would be more successful if I gave up certain pleasures'ConclusionBurnout is more common among young people. In the older generation, a good ability to put things into perspective, a good balance between work and leisure, and a strong sense of tradition appear to be resources to aid against burnout. The younger generation often deals with stressors. This younger generation appears to have a higher work ethic and commitment.