The Development of Burnout Among Special Educators

Abstract

Although numerous studies have examined the phenomenon of burnout among special educators, the manner in which stress develops over time has not been addressed. Tlais article describes a study in which special educators were followed over the 5-year period following the receipt of their undergraduate degrees in special education. Participants responded to a questionnaire and the Maslach Burnout Inventory, which was administered 3 times in Years 1-2 and 3 times in Years 4-5. Results indicated that teachers (n = 41) who remained in special education experienced slow but steady increases in emotional exhaustion over the course of the 5 years. Some differences concerning trends in emotional exhaustion were observed among subgroups of teachers.