Burnout and engagement of non-professional counsellors in South Africa

Non-professional counsellors have been introduced to assist employees with coming to terms with their experiences during violent work-based incidents. These counsellors are subject to the effects of burnout as a consequence of the type of work they do. The objective of this research was to validate the Maslach Burnout Inventory Human Services Survey (MBIHSS) for non-professional counsellors doing trauma counselling in banks. A cross-sectional survey design was used. The sample consisted of 168 employees of the three major banks. The MBI-HSS and a biographical questionnaire were administered. Structural equation modelling confirmed a 3-factor model of burnout, consisting of Emotional Exhaustion, Depersonalisation and Personal Accomplishment. The three factors showed acceptable internal consistency. OPSOMMING Nie-professionele beraders word gebruik om werknemers te ondersteun om hul ervarings van werksvenvante geweld te kan venverk. Hierdie beraders is onderhewig aan die effek van uitbranding as gevolg van die tipe werk waaraan hulle blootgestel word. Die doelstelling van hierdie navorsing was om die Maslach Uitbrandingsvraelys Menslike Hulpbrondienste Opname (MBI-HSS) vir nie-professionele beraders, wat hoofsaaklik traumaberading in banke doen, te valideer. 'n Dwarsdeursnee opname-ontwerp is gebruik. Die steekproef het uit 168 werknemers van die drie vernaamste banke bestaan. Die MBI-HSS en 'n biografiese vraelys is afgeneem. Strukturele vergelykingsmodellering het 'n 3-faktonnodel van uitbranding, bestaande uit Emosionele Uitputting, Depersonalisasie en Persoonlike Bereiking bevestig. Die drie faktore het aanvaarbare interne konsekwentheid getoon. The financial assistance of the National Research Foundation (NRF) towards this research is hereby acknowledged Opinions expressed and conclustons arrived at are those af the authors and no1 necessarily those ofthe NRF. South Africans have been and are still living in an intense stressful environment. In addition to the universal and expected emotional dificulties of present day life they have a past filled with abuse and depletion on many levels (Louw, 1996; Louw, Shaw, Cameren & Robertshaw, 1998). South Africans have to cope with levels of crime and violence five times higher than the average rate on the international crime index (Schlemrner, 1996). More and more organisations are being confronted with work-related violence. The literature shows that organisations such as banks are increasingly becoming the context in which employees fall victim to acts of criminal violence, such as bank robberies, and that the workplace is no longer a safe haven for employees (Everstine & Everstine, 1993; Flannery, 1996; Richards, 1994). These events not only affect the individual, but also the organisation, resulting in absenteeism and low morale (Maslach, 1998). The potential for experiencing violent or traumatic incidents is particularly pertinent for anyone handling money as a day-today part of their work (Allen & Ortlepp, 1998; Richards, 1994; Urquhart, 1998). A response to this has been the introduction of trauma management interventions utilising trained nonprofessional trauma counsellors who aim to assist fellow-colleagues with coming to terms with the experience of being involved in a violent work-based incident (Friedman, 1997; Ortlepp, 1998). Some of the most neglected people in a traumatic incident are often the counsellors who work with the traumatised. They often fail to recognise the full impact that the event has on their own lives. As there are many types of stressors related to counselling, counsellors are subject to the effects of burnout as a consequence of the type of work they do (Maslach, 1981). They are also subject to traumatic incidents and the insidious effects of compassion fatigue and vicarious trauma (Herman, 1992). Figley (1995, p. 252) noted that this is a form of burnout that results from empathetic identification and ". is frequently the characteristic that leads people to choose the role of helper, especially as a social worker, counsellor, or other type of professional helper". He also observed that empathetic concerns, linked to emotional contagion (experiencing the feelings of the sufferer as a function of exposure to the sufferer) are amongst the components that contribute to compassion stress or burnout (Figley, 1995; Maslach, 1982). Therefore, burnout may occur in a wide range of persons involved in providing aid to others. It is most prevalent amongst professionals and associates of trauma survivors (Beaton & Murphy, 1995). Counsellors working in stressful situations need to be very attentive to their own psychological wellness. Quite often they overestimate their capacities to resist stressors inherent to counselling and underestimate their need for receiving respect and validation through others. The consequence of not really dealing with oneself also leads to burnout. What is meant by this is an absolute lack of distance towards one's work, a permanent exaggerated use of one's own capabilities till the point of total fatigue is reached (Maslach,