Extending the Two Process Model of Burnout in Child Protection
Workers: The Role of Resilience in Mediating Burnout via
Organizational Factors of Control, Values, Fairness, Reward,
Workload and Community Relationships
McFadden, P., Mallet, J., & Leiter, M. (2017). Extending the Two Process Model of Burnout in Child Protection
Workers: The Role of Resilience in Mediating Burnout via Organizational Factors of Control, Values, Fairness,
Reward, Workload and Community Relationships.
Stress and Health
. https://doi.org/10.1002/smi.2763
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Stress and Health
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Peer reviewed version
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Download date:10. Aug. 2022
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Extending the Two Process Model of Burnout in Child Protection Workers: The Role of Resilience
in Mediating Burnout via Organizational Factors of Control, Values, Fairness, Reward, Workload
and Community Relationships
Abstract Burnout has been disproportionally reported in child-protection social work. This paper
presents data from 162 child-protection staff in Northern-Ireland, assessed for burnout using the
Maslach Burnout Inventory. Path models were estimated, based on an extension of the Two Process
Demands and Values model (Leiter, 2008) to include additional measures of resilience using the
Resilience Scale-14, as well as Perceived Rewards and Sense of Community from the Areas of Work
Life Scale AWLS (Leiter, 2008). Optimal model fit was achieved by modelling Resilience as a
mediator of the relationship between organisational factors of Control and Value Congruence and
burnout. Resilience also directly predicted Emotional Exhaustion ( = -.23, p<.005) and Personal
Accomplishment ( = .46, p<.001). Workload was the strongest direct predictor of Emotional
Exhaustion ( = -.54, p<.001). Adding Perceived Rewards to extend the Two Process Model resulted
in moderate associations with Control ( =.44, p<.001), Workload ( =.26, p<.005), Fairness (
=.40, p<.001) and Values ( =.32, p<.001). In the final model, Resilience is modelled as both an
outcome of some organisational factors whilst also making a unique direct contribution to explaining
burnout alongside other organisational factors. Other pathways and mediating relationships are
reported and further research directions discussed.
Introduction
Child protection social work is acknowledged as a stressful and demanding occupation with high
levels of staff turnover and concerning levels of inexperienced staff in front line practice (Healy et
al., 2009; McGowan, et al., 2009; McFadden, et al., 2014). This is problematic as the profession is
tasked with protecting the most vulnerable in society from abuse, neglect and significant harm.
Increased pressure is added to this sector in recent times with a litany of Serious Case Reviews
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(SCRs) in the UK that point to failure to prevent child abuse and child death tragedies from
occurring. Often SCRs and Inquiries draw on conclusions around systemic and professional
shortcomings that fall short of protecting children. Common factors include references of
professional ‘blindness’ to more deep seated systemic failings (Brandon et al., 2010) that may
include the organizational culture and climate (Glisson et al., 2012). Parton (2014, p 11) maps four
decades of child protection in the UK and provides a critical analysis of a growing ‘politics of
outrage’ whereby the perpetrator of child abuse and fatalities tend not to be the focus of
responsibility but blame often rests with professionals, particularly social workers and the
administration of the child protection system itself. Concern therefore focuses on how to improve
failings in the child protection system, as opposed to addressing child abuse in society.
Using an extension of the Two Process model (Leiter, 2008), the current paper aims to provide
insight into organizational factors that potentially impact on burnout feelings of emotional
exhaustion, depersonalisation and personal accomplishment within a social work context and seeks
to locate individual resilience within this framework to better explain job burnout.
Relevance of Resilience to Burnout and their Definitions
What is it that makes some workers seem more resilient to the high demands of this occupation?
Why do some social workers seem to survive and thrive in these conditions whilst others burn out?
Resilience theory may offer an explanation. According to Wagnild & Young (1993) resilience is
‘state’ and not ‘trait’, meaning that levels of resilience are altered according to the social context.
Wagnild (2009) defines resilience as a process in reaction to adversity that enables individuals to
maintain equilibrium and find meaning that enables them to survive difficult and challenging life
events.
“Individuals who are resilient regain balance and keep going despite adversity and find
meaning amidst confusion and turmoil.” (Wagnild, 2009a p. 12).
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Maslach & Leiter (2008 p. 498) proposed the continuum concept between “burnout and job
engagement” that supports the ‘state’ theory by Wagnild (2009a) which contends that one’s reaction
to adversity is not a trait based phenomenon but instead it is a ‘state’ and is context specific and
therefore reliant on resilience building protective factors being present. Burnout is considered to be
an ‘adverse’ life event and is defined as follows.“A syndrome of emotional exhaustion,
depersonalization, and reduced personal accomplishment that can occur among individuals who do
‘people work’.” (Maslach & Jackson, 1986 p. 1).
Burnout may be defined as a stress related phenomenon with the potential to impact on somatic
aspects of health. For example, ‘headaches, gastrointestinal disorders, muscle tension, hypertension,
cold and flu episodes and sleep disorder’ (Maslach & Leiter 2008 p. 499). It is also related to mental
distress states that are categorised under the title of “Job Related Neurasthenia” (WHO, 1992) such
as emotional exhaustion, fatigue and decreased work performance (Maslach & Schaufelli, 1993).
Research has also found that burnout is associated with other negative consequences such as ‘job
dissatisfaction, reduced organizational commitment, intention to leave, absenteeism and staff
turnover’ (Maslach & Leiter, 2008 p. 499). Maslach et al., (2001) therefore argue that the fit
between the person and the workplace underpins the potential for burnout or job engagement.
Therefore, if the demands of the job are in excess of an individual’s capacity (perceived or
otherwise), this can create a sense of misfit or incongruence with potentially negative impacts on the
individual.
Why Extend the Two Process Model of Demands and Values (Leiter 2008)?
Leiter’s (2008) Two Process Model distinguishes two important organizational factors that impact on
workers experiencing aspects of burnout in relation to their job. These are workload demands and
values. Work overload is associated with feelings of exhaustion which underpins the evidence
relating to job stress and burnout research. If workers experience work overload for a prolonged
period they may feel pushed beyond capacity and experience tiredness, fatigue, stress and burnout.
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As burnout is a particular risk for those who do ‘people work’ (Maslach & Jackson, 1986), value
congruence can be compromised if people are exhausted by the job and lack the energy to be fully
engaged in the work. To further complicate the question of value congruence, one must consider
individual professional values as well as the sometimes conflicting nature of corporate or employer
values. When this occurs, depersonalisation can be the result and which can impact on the workers
capacity for empathy, having any sense of personal accomplishment or deriving meaning from the
job which can place the worker at increased risk of burnout (Laschinger & Leiter, 2006).
Studies in other settings have similarly confirmed that resilience among school age pupils can be
predicted from feelings of academic self-efficacy, control, planning/coordination, composure/anxiety
and commitment to studies (Martin & Marsh, 2006). The authors also found that resilience was
subsequently predictive of enjoyment and participation at school and self-esteem. In the context of
social work, this paper compares two theoretical extensions of the Two Process Model (Leiter,
2008). Firstly, we model resilience as a predictor of the feelings of control (organizational factor)
and personal accomplishment (burnout factor) which could be defined as akin to self-esteem and
participation in educational contexts, whist attempting to maintain the other aspects of the Two
Process model. Secondly we compare this to a model where resilience acts as a mediator of the
relationship between the areas of work-life subscales and burnout. In this latter model resilience may
be predicted by feelings of control, as evidenced by Martin & Marsh (2006) and by values in a social
work context which is similar to the notion of commitment to studies in an educational context.
This paper thus provides more theoretical information on the range of factors introduced into the
model and we justify selection of additional variables to the amended and extended models using a
statistical model building methodology. The models compliment theoretical understanding of
burnout, job engagement and organizational factors that interact as both risk and protective factors
and extend our knowledge about individual resilience and burnout in the context of organizational
culture in child-protection social work or child welfare.
