Japan Journal of Nursing Science (2011) 8, 76–86

doi:10.1111/j.1742-7924.2010.00161.x

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Examination of a cognitive model of stress, burnout, andintention to resign for Japanese nurses
jjns_161

76..86

Takashi OHUE,1 Michiko MORIYAMA1 and Takashi NAKAYA2
1

Division of Nursing Science, Graduate School of Health Sciences, Hiroshima University; and 2Faculty of Health and Welfare,Prefectural University of Hiroshima, Hiroshima, Japan

Abstract
Aim: A reduction in burnout is required to decrease the voluntary turnover of nurses. This study was carriedout with the aim of establishing a cognitive model of stress, burnout, and intention to resign for nurses.
Methods: A questionnaire survey was administered to 336 nurses (27 male and 309 female) who had
worked for ⱕ5 years at a hospital with multiple departments. The survey included an evaluation of burnout(Maslach Burnout Inventory), stress (Nursing Job Stressor Scale), automatic thoughts (Automatic Thoughts
Questionnaire-Revised), and irrational beliefs (Japanese Irrational Belief Test), in addition to the intention
to resign.
Results: The stressors that affected burnout in the nurses included conflict with other nursing staff, nursing
role conflict, qualitative workload, quantitative workload, and conflict with patients. The irrational beliefs
that were related to burnout included dependence, problem avoidance, and helplessness. In order to examine
the automatic thoughts affecting burnout, groups with low and high negative automatic thoughts and low
and high positive automatic thoughts were established. A two-way ANOVA showed a significant interactionof these factors with emotional exhaustion, but no significant interaction with depersonalization and apersonal sense of accomplishment. Only the major effect was significant. The final model showed a processof “stressor → irrational beliefs → negative automatic thoughts/positive automatic thoughts → burnout”. In
addition, a relationship between burnout and an intention to resign was shown.
Conclusion: These results suggest that stress and burnout in nurses might be prevented and that the numberof nurses who leave their position could be decreased by changing irrational beliefs to rational beliefs,
decreasing negative automatic thoughts, and facilitating positive automatic thoughts.
Key words: burnout, cognitive-behavioral therapy, nurse.

INTRODUCTION
The turnover rate of nurses in Japan was 12.6% in thefinancial year of 2007, which was 0.2% higher than therate reported in 2006 (Japanese Nursing Association,2009). This turnover rate might be related to organizational factors, such as the lack of a sense of fulfillment atwork and a heavy vocational burden, and working

stress, such as relationships with colleagues (Hayes
et al., 2006). The rate is also related to burnout (Leiter& Maslach, 2009; Tsuchie & Nakamura, 1993). The
word “burnout” began to be used by Freudenberger, a
psychiatrist in the USA, in 1974 to describe the mental
and physical exhaustion of medical workers (Freudenberger, 1974). In 1981, Maslach and Jackson (1981,
p. 99) defined burnout as a:

Correspondence: Takashi Ohue, 1-2-3 Kasumi, Minami-ku,
Hiroshima 734-8551, Japan.
Email: takashimoon2001@yahoo.co.jp
Received 12 May 2009; accepted 5 August 2010.

. . . syndrome mainly with excessive mental and physicalfatigue and emotional depletion caused by excessive requirement for psychical energy during a process to support others
for a long period of time, accompanying self-deprecation,
aversion to work, and lack of compassion.

© 2010 The Authors
Japan Journal of Nursing Science © 2010 Japan Academy of Nursing ScienceJapan Journal of Nursing Science (2011) 8, 76–86

In Japan, many reports have suggested that younger
nurses tend to have burnout (Yamazaki, Ishida, &Kashiwakura, 1999) and that nurses with clinical experience of 1–5 years have higher stress (Hori, Suzuki, &Shiraishi, 2000). Thus, it is important to provide
support for nurses with this level of experience.
As an approach to the prevention of burnout thatis related to the turnover of nurses, Spooner-Lane
and Patton (2007) suggested a need for preventive interventions on an organizational basis, while AbuAlRub
and Al-Zarus (2008) and Wu, Zhu, Wang, Wang, andLan (2007) suggested the importance of strengthening the cognitive measurements for individual nurses.
Thus, methods for the prevention of burnout can bedivided into organizational and personal approaches. In
Japan, organizational approaches for the prevention of
turnover, such as empowerment (Maeda et al., 2007),
have been initiated, but to our knowledge, cognitive
strategies for burnout in individual nurses have not been
examined.
Maslach and Jackson (1981) defined burnout basedon three symptoms: emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and a lowered personal sense of accomplishment. Emotional exhaustion was suggested to be thecore symptom. As the work of nurses is a human service
in which they must appropriately respond to one-sided
requests from patients while suppressing their emotions,
their work might be considered as “emotional work”. In
recent years, the relationship between this kind of workand burnout has been discussed and Hochschild (2000)
suggested that persons with a high risk of burnout arelikely to have heartache, considering that the response ofa client to their official role is tailored to the persons’own personality. In other words, this becomes a “cognitive” problem because such persons cannot view thestress that is caused by their official role as a nurse
independently from their personality.
In considering the prevention of burnout from thestandpoint of personal cognition, the cognitive therapy
that was developed by Beck (1990) for depression can beused as an approach to emotional control by changing
the cognition that an event occurred due to a participant’s own personality. In this therapy, depression isconsidered to be due to incorrect distorted cognition,rather than caused directly by a stressful event, and thefactors that cause and maintain depression can be classified into three categories: schema, logical thinking
errors, and automatic thoughts. Schema is a core belief
and a personal, consistent style of cognition. A logicalthinking error is a style of processing information fromothers that can be observed in persons with depression.

Cognitive model of burnout for nurses

Automatic thoughts are ideas that emerge automatically,
regardless of personal will (Beck). Automatic thoughts
include negative thoughts that can cause depression andpositive thoughts, which have a negative correlation
with depression and negative automatic thoughts(Ingram, Kendall, Siegle, Guarino, & McLaughlin,1995).
Collectively, these ideas suggest that a specific schemain the cognition of nurses who develop burnout mightcause negative automatic thoughts and emotions andthat the accumulation of such thoughts and emotions
could induce burnout. The schema, which is considered
to cause negative automatic thoughts, is used as asynonym of a personal, consistent belief system in manycases. Ellis (1962) conceptualized the belief system as
represented by the word “must”, which is related todepression, and as an unfounded, but absolute and ideological, concept, which is defined as an “irrational
belief”. Balever (2001) studied the relationship between
the burnout of nurses and irrational beliefs. No measurement scale for schema that is related to burnout has
been developed, but a scale for irrational beliefs is available. Thus, in this study, nurses’ irrational beliefs were
measured in an attempt to measure the schema of nurses
as a background factor for automatic thoughts.
As mentioned above, the burnout of nurses might berelated to irrational beliefs that are specific to nurses andthe automatic thoughts that are caused by the irrational
beliefs. We hypothesized that such distorted cognition
would cause emotional exhaustion and burnout and,thus, we established the model that is shown in Figure 1.
In this study, first, we examined the differences inburnout depending on personal factors. Next, relationships among the stressors, irrational beliefs, and automatic thoughts that affect burnout were examined.

Stressor

Irrational beliefs

Automatic thoughts

Burnout
Figure 1 Hypothetical model of this study.

© 2010 The Authors
Japan Journal of Nursing Science © 2010 Japan Academy of Nursing Science77

T. Ohue et al.

Japan Journal of Nursing Science (2011) 8, 76–86

Then, the validity of the hypothetical model was examined. Finally, the relationship between the intention
to resign and burnout were examined. Confirmationof the validity of the model might make it possible toprovide cognitive behavioral therapy for the reductionof burnout.

ersonalization and lower scores for personal accomplishment show a high tendency for burnout. Nagai andOno (2008) showed the reliability of the MBI, based ona Cronbach’s a-coefficient of 0.84–0.86. The validity ofthis measure was verified by confirming a relationshipwith psychosomatic signs (mental fatigue, physicalfatigue, decline of attentiveness) (Tao & Kubo).

METHODS

Stressors

Participants

The Nursing Job Stressor Scale (NJSS), which was developed by Higashiguchi et al. (1998), was used to evaluate
stress. The NJSS consists of 33 items that describe potentially stressful situations for nurses, divided into thefollowing seven subscales: conflict with other nursing
staff, nursing role conflict, conflict with physicians/
autonomy, dealing with death and dying, qualitative
workload, quantitative workload, and conflict withpatients. The higher the score, the greater the burden of
the stressor. Higashiguchi et al. showed the reliability of
the NJSS, based on a Cronbach’s a-coefficient of 0.75–
0.85, and tested the validity of the scale by using MBI
scores as external criteria.

The participants were 445 nurses who had worked forⱕ5 years at three hospitals with several departments for
acute treatment.

Sampling
Eight hospitals that provided acute medical treatment in
the Kansai district in Japan were chosen at random. The
nursing director of each hospital was asked to cooperatewith the study and consent was obtained from threehospitals. One of the researchers distributed the questionnaires and the participants were given 2 weeks tocomplete them. After the enrollment of the participants,
the questionnaires were placed in an envelope that was
prepared for each ward and sealed before collection.
The study was carried out in October and November
2008.

Instruments
The study was based on the use of self-report questionnaires. The details of the surveys and measurement
scales that were used in the study are as follows.

Personal factors
The burnout of nurses has been related to their sex, age,department of work, educational background, marital
status, and clinical experience (Kitaoka-Higashiguchi
et al., 2004; Suzuki, Itomine, Saito, Katuki, & Sato,
2008; Tao & Kubo, 1996; Yamazaki et al., 1999).
Therefore, the data for these factors were obtained in
the study.

Automatic thoughts
The Japanese version of the Automatic Thoughts
Questionnaire-Revised (ATQ-R), established by
Kodama, Katayanagi, Shimada, and Sakano (1994), wasused. This scale was established by translating the scale of
Kendall and Ingram (1989) and has 38 questions, including 15 items for a negative evaluation of the future(“future negation”), 13 items for self-blame (“selfnegation”), and 10 items for positive thinking. The participants select one of five answers from “definitely yes”
to “definitely no”. Higher scores on these subscales showthat the participants have strong automatic thoughts.
Kodama et al. showed the reliability of the ATQ-R, basedon a Cronbach’s a-coefficient of 0.88–0.94, and tested
the validity by using correlations with the Beck
Depression Inventory and the Ways of Coping Check
Lists-Revised.

Irrational beliefs
Burnout
The Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) was used toevaluate burnout. This scale was developed by Tao andKubo (1992) by revising the scale of Maslach andJackson (1981) and includes three factors: emotional
exhaustion, depersonalization, and personal accomplishment. The scale has 17 questions and the participants select one of five answers from “always yes” to“no”. Higher scores for emotional exhaustion and dep-

78

For the measurement of irrational beliefs, the Japanese
brief version of the Irrational Belief Scale (Japanese Irrational Belief Test, JIBT-20) was used (Mori, Hasegawa,
Ishikuma, Shimada, & Sakano, 1994). This scale is theshortened version of the 70 item scale that Matsumura(1991) developed, originally based on the theory ofEllis (1962), and is composed of 20 questions in total,
including four for each of five factors: self-expectation,
dependence, ethical blame, problem avoidance, and help-© 2010 The Authors
Japan Journal of Nursing Science © 2010 Japan Academy of Nursing ScienceJapan Journal of Nursing Science (2011) 8, 76–86

lessness. The participants select one of five answers from“definitely yes” to “definitely no”. Higher scores showthat the participants have strong irrational beliefs. Moriet al. showed the reliability of the JIBT-20, based on a
Cronbach’s a-coefficient of 0.65–0.89, and tested thevalidity by using correlations with the Social Interaction
Self-statement and Social Avoidance and Distress Scale.

Intention to resign
The participants were asked about their intention to
resign at the time of the study, based on categories madeby Tsuchie and Nakamura (1993): whether or not theywanted to continue to work as a nurse, wanted to switch
hospitals or departments, or wanted to quit working as
a nurse.

Data analysis
An a-coefficient was calculated to examine the reliability of the answers on each scale. Correlations between
burnout and the characteristics of the participants were
examined by a t-test and one-way ANOVA. The relationships between burnout and stressors were examinedby a multiple linear regression analysis, with the seven
NJSS subscales used as the independent variables andthe three MBI subscales used as the dependent variables.
Similarly, the relationships between burnout and irrational beliefs were examined by a multiple linear regression
analysis, with the five JIBT-20 subscales used as theindependent variables and the three MBI subscales usedas the dependent variables. The relationship of burnout
with negative and positive automatic thoughts was
examined by dividing the participants into groups
with low and high “negative automatic thoughts” andinto groups with low and high “positive automatic
thoughts”, based on the median scores. A two-way
ANOVA was carried out by using the three MBI subscales. “Future negation” and “self-negation” on the
ATQ-R were included as negative automatic thoughts.
Based on the results of the analyses of the stressors,
irrational beliefs, and automatic thoughts, the hypothetical model (Fig. 1) was examined with a covariancestructure analysis using related variables. To evaluate
the hypothetical model, comparisons were carried out of
the indirect and direct effects and of the three models inwhich burnout affected cognition. The models with highconformance were selected by using the Goodness of Fit
Index (GFI), Adjusted GFI (AGFI), Comparative Fit
Index, Root Mean Square Error of Approximation(RMSEA), and Akaike’s Information Criterion (AIC). In
order to examine the relationship between burnout andthe intention to resign, a logistic multiple linear regres-Cognitive model of burnout for nurses

sion analysis was carried out with the three MBI subscales as the independent variables and the three items of
the intention to resign as the dependent variables. SPSSv. 11.5 and AMOS v. 5.0 (SPSS, Tokyo, Japan) wereused for all the analyses, with a significance level of 5%.

Ethical considerations
This study was carried out after obtaining approval
from the Ethical Committee for Epidemiological Studies
at Hiroshima University, Hiroshima, Japan. A written
explanation was provided to the participants regarding
the study’s objectives, methods, protection of anonymity, and the voluntary nature of participation. It was
explained clearly that the data would be used only forthis study. The receipt of the answers to the questionnaires was taken to indicate informed consent.

RESULTS
Questionnaires were distributed to 445 nurses andanswers were collected from 347 nurses (collection rate:
78.1%). After exclusion of the missing values and outliers, the data from 336 nurses (27 male and 309 female)
were used in the analysis (response rate: 75.5%).

Reliability of the individual scales anddescriptive statistical values
The a-coefficients for the different subscales were as
follows: JIBT-20 for irrational beliefs, 0.70–0.84;
ATQ-R for automatic thoughts, 0.76–0.94; NJSS for
stressors, 0.70–0.91; and MBI for burnout, 0.76–0.86(Table 1). As the coefficient of reliability for each scale
was close to the acceptable value and to the reliability ofthe original scale, we judged that each scale showedinternal consistency.

Factors affecting burnout
For emotional exhaustion, significant differences were
found for sex, age, marital status, and department ofwork (Table 2). The scores of the female participants
were significantly higher than those of the male participants (P < 0.05). The scores of the participants who
were aged 20–25 years were higher than those of theolder participants (P < 0.05) and a multiple comparison showed that the participants who were aged
20–25 years had significantly higher scores than the participants who were aged 31–35 years (P < 0.05). The
scores of the single participants were significantly higher
than those of the married participants (P < 0.01). The
department where the nurses worked also had a significant effect (P < 0.01), with the scores of the nurses in the© 2010 The Authors
Japan Journal of Nursing Science © 2010 Japan Academy of Nursing Science79

T. Ohue et al.

Japan Journal of Nursing Science (2011) 8, 76–86

Table 1 Descriptive statistics for each scale
Scale

N

Mean

SD

a-coefficient

JIBT-20
Self-expectation
Dependence
Ethical blame
Problem avoidance
Helplessness

336
336
336
336
336

11.30
13.97
14.60
11.27
13.68

2.90
2.79
2.45
2.35
2.31

0.84
0.78
0.75
0.74
0.70

ATQ-R
Negative evaluation of the future
Negative self-evaluation
Positive thinking

336
336
336

35.84
36.18
26.99

11.38
7.66
5.30

0.94
0.86
0.76

NJSS
Total strain
Conflict with other nursing staff
Nursing role conflict
Conflict with physicians/autonomy
Dealing with death and dying
Qualitative workload
Quantitative workload
Conflict with patients

336
336
336
336
336
336
336
336

85.77
17.44
13.48
10.68
8.75
14.46
15.59
5.37

18.35
5.81
3.49
4.82
3.89
3.36
3.27
1.90

0.91
0.81
0.82
0.84
0.70
0.77
0.82
0.76

MBI
Emotional exhaustion
Depersonalization
Personal accomplishment

336
336
336

17.63
12.99
13.13

4.61
5.11
3.89

0.83
0.86
0.76

JIBT-20, Japanese Irrational Belief Test; ATQ-R, Automatic Thoughts Questionnaire-Revised; NJSS, Nursing Job Stressor Scale; MBI, Maslach
Burnout Inventory.

obstetrics and gynecology departments being higher
than those of the nurses in the other departments(P < 0.05).
For depersonalization, a significant difference wasfound for clinical experience (P < 0.05). A multiple comparison showed that the scores of the participants withclinical experience of <3 years were higher than those of
the participants with more experience. Regarding personal accomplishment, a significant difference wasfound for the department (P < 0.01), with the scores of
the nurses in the pediatrics and outpatient departments
being significantly higher than those of the nurses in the
obstetrics and gynecology departments (P < 0.05).

Relationships among the stressors,
irrational beliefs, and automatic thoughts
affecting burnout
For stressors, the emotional exhaustion subscale ofburnout showed positive correlations with qualitative
workload (P < 0.01), quantitative workload (P < 0.01),
and conflict with patients (P < 0.01). The depersonaliza-

80

tion subscale showed positive correlations with conflictwith other nursing staff (P < 0.01), qualitative workload(P < 0.05), quantitative workload (P < 0.01), and conflict with patients (P < 0.01) and a negative correlation
with nursing role conflict (P < 0.01). The personal
accomplishment subscale showed negative correlations
with qualitative workload (P < 0.01) and quantitative
workload (P < 0.01) and a positive correlation withnursing role conflict (P < 0.01) (Table 3).
For irrational beliefs, emotional exhaustion related toburnout showed positive correlations with dependence(P < 0.01) and helplessness (P < 0.01), depersonalization
showed positive correlations with dependence (P < 0.01)
and problem avoidance (P < 0.01), and personal accomplishment showed negative correlations with dependence(P < 0.01) and helplessness (P < 0.01) (Table 4).
The scores for negative automatic thoughts and positive automatic thoughts were categorized into low andhigh levels by using the respective median scores as
cut-off points. A two-way ANOVA was carried out for
those cells that were defined by a combination of theselevels in order to examine the interactional and main© 2010 The Authors
Japan Journal of Nursing Science © 2010 Japan Academy of Nursing ScienceJapan Journal of Nursing Science (2011) 8, 76–86

Cognitive model of burnout for nurses

Table 2 Relationships between the nurses’ attributes and burnout
Emotional exhaustion
Nursing attribute

Depersonalization

Personal accomplishment

N

%

Mean

SD

Mean

SD

Mean

SD

Sex
Male
FemaleAge (years)
20–25
26–30
31–35
36–44

27
309

8.0
92.0

15.74
17.79*†

4.49
4.60

13.30
12.97

5.66
5.06

13.85
13.06

4.16
3.87

193
123
13
7

57.4
36.6
3.9
2.1

17.91
17.67*‡
14.81
15.86

4.57
4.67
3.80
5.67

13.08
13.41
11.90
9.43

5.17
5.24
4.23
2.37

13.03
13.29
14.43
11.00

3.84
3.91
4.49
3.00

Educational background
Technical college
Junior college
University
Graduate school
Advanced courses

224
12
86
1
13

66.6
3.6
25.6
0.3
3.9

17.31
19.58
18.02
24.00
18.23

4.68
3.48
4.25
–
6.17

12.80
14.25
13.37
20.00
12.15

5.29
5.22
4.71
–
4.24

13.06
12.42
13.30
7.00
14.15

3.94
3.23
3.98
–
2.82

Marital status
SingleMarried

306
30

91.1
8.9

17.91**†
14.73

4.54
4.44

13.12
11.73

5.09
5.17

13.04
14.03

3.77
4.99

Department
Internal medicine
Surgery
Obstetrics and gynecology
Pediatrics
Mixed ward
Operating room
Critical care
Outpatient

67
103
25
27
50
14
23
27

19.9
30.7
7.4
8.0
14.9
4.2
6.8
8.0

18.22
17.97
20.44
17.44*‡
16.64
17.29
16.43
15.44

4.80
4.45
4.06
3.61
4.36
3.85
5.48
4.91

13.76
13.24
14.92
12.44
12.22
12.29
11.83
11.70

5.45
4.70
6.26
4.21
4.45
5.86
5.22
5.69

12.73
13.28
11.04
14.44*‡
13.54
12.71
11.74
14.74

4.27
3.57
3.12
4.26
3.42
4.01
3.70
4.36

Amount of experience (years)
1
2
3
4
5

100
94
52
59
31

30.0
28.0
15.0
18.0
9.0

17.98
17.56
18.46
16.69
17.06

4.55
4.74
4.59
4.70
4.21

12.29*‡
12.87
15.33
12.53
12.61

4.87
4.68
6.22
4.90
4.57

12.47
13.01
13.27
13.95
13.77

4.09
3.57
4.15
3.83
3.68

*P < 0.05, **P < 0.01. †Student’s t-test; ‡one-way ANOVA (Tukey’s multiple comparisons test).

Table 3 Stressors associated with burnout

Stressor
Conflict with other nursing staff
Nursing role conflict
Conflict with physicians/autonomy
Dealing with death and dying
Qualitative workload
Quantitative workload
Conflict with patients
R2

Emotional exhaustion

Depersonalization

Personal accomplishment

b

b

b

0.08
-0.06
-0.08
-0.05
0.22**
0.42**
0.19**
0.42**

0.28**-0.17**
-0.01
-0.02
0.15*
0.19**
0.24**
0.32**

0.11
0.25**
0.04
0.10-0.21**-0.19**-0.10
0.39***P < 0.05, **P < 0.01.

© 2010 The Authors
Japan Journal of Nursing Science © 2010 Japan Academy of Nursing Science81

T. Ohue et al.

Japan Journal of Nursing Science (2011) 8, 76–86

Table 4 Irrational beliefs associated with burnout
Emotional exhaustion

Depersonalization

Personal accomplishment

b

b

b

-0.03
0.23**-0.04
0.10
0.16**
0.34**-0.01
0.15**-0.04
0.26**
0.05
0.34**

0.10-0.14**
0.08-0.08-0.13**
0.25**

Irrational belief
Self-expectation
Dependence
Ethical blame
Problem avoidance
Helplessness
R2**P < 0.01.

effects of negative automatic thoughts and positive automatic thoughts on each subscale of the MBI. Observation of the cell means in Table 5 seemed to indicate
larger effects of positive automatic thoughts for higher
negative automatic thoughts and larger effects of negative automatic thoughts for lower positive automatic
thoughts for all the subscales, but the two-way ANOVA
revealed that the interactional effect of positive automatic thoughts and negative automatic thoughts was
not significant for depersonalization and personal
accomplishment. Therefore, we examined the main
effects of positive automatic thoughts and negative automatic thoughts independently and both were found tobe highly significant. However, for emotional exhaustion, the interactional effect of negative automatic
thoughts and positive automatic thoughts was found tobe significant at the 5% level. Therefore, we examinedthe effect of one factor (“positive automatic thoughts”
or “negative automatic thoughts”) on emotional exhaustion for each level of another factor (“negative
automatic thoughts” or “positive automatic thoughts”).
The effect of positive automatic thoughts was highly
significant for the higher level of negative automatic
thoughts (F [1,332] = 32.36, P = 0.00) and barely significant at the 5% level for the lower level of negative
automatic thoughts (F [1,332] = 4.32, P = 0.04), while
the effect of negative automatic thoughts was highly
significant for the lower level of positive automatic
thoughts (F [1,332] = 23.70, P = 0.00) and not significant for the higher level of positive automatic thoughts(F [1,332] = 3.45, P = 0.06).

for an analysis of covariance structure. The latent variable of negative automatic thoughts and the observed
variable of positive automatic thoughts were used. The
parameters were estimated by the maximum likelihood
estimation method. A comparison of the three models,
based on the GFI, showed that model j had the lowest
AIC and highest GFI (Table 6, Fig. 2). The GFI was
considered to be acceptable, as shown by the data:c2 = 241.83, d.f. = 72, GFI = 0.90, AGFI = 0.85,
RMSEA = 0.084, and AIC = 307.83. Regarding theindividual latent variables, positive standardized coefficients were found between stressors and irrational
beliefs (P < 0.01), irrational beliefs and negative automatic thoughts (P < 0.01), and negative automatic
thoughts and burnout (P < 0.01), while negative standardized coefficients were found between irrational
beliefs and positive automatic thoughts (P < 0.01)
and positive automatic thoughts and burnout (P <0.01). The effects of automatic thoughts were0.66 ¥ 0.25 = 0.17 for “negative automatic thoughts”
and -0.44 ¥ -0.11 = 0.05 for “positive automatic
thoughts”, which indicated that burnout was morestrongly influenced by negative automatic thoughts. The
direct effect between stressors and burnout was 0.68
and the indirect effect between irrational beliefs andautomatic thoughts was 0.62 ¥ 0.66 ¥ 0.25 ¥ -0.44 ¥-0.11 = 0.005. This indicated a strong direct effectbetween stressors and burnout and a small indirect effectbetween irrational beliefs and automatic thoughts.

Cognitive model of burnout

Relationship between burnout and theintention to resign

Based on the analyses of the stressors, irrational beliefs,
and automatic thoughts, which might affect burnout, ahypothetical model of three cognitive processes was prepared by using the individual observed variables (Fig. 1)“Want to quit working as a nurse” was stated by 72(21%) of the 336 participants, “want to switch hospitals
or departments” was stated by 93 (28%), and “want tocontinue working as a nurse” was stated by 115 (46%)

82© 2010 The Authors
Japan Journal of Nursing Science © 2010 Japan Academy of Nursing Science2.34
19.09**DISCUSSION
Effects of individual factors on burnout*P < 0.05, **P < 0.01. NAT, negative automatic thoughts; PAT, positive automatic thoughts.

13.09
3.86
14.26
3.95
11.24
3.42
13.67
3.69
Mean
SD
Personal accomplishment

Cognitive model of burnout for nurses(Table 7). An examination of the relationship between
burnout and the intention to resign in individual participants indicated that “want to quit working as a nurse”
had a positive correlation with emotional exhaustion(P < 0.05) and depersonalization (P < 0.01) and a negative correlation with personal accomplishment(P < 0.05), “want to switch hospitals or departments”
had a positive correlation with emotional exhaustion(P < 0.05), and “want to continue working as a nurse”
had negative correlations with emotional exhaustion(P < 0.01) and depersonalization (P < 0.01) and a positive correlation with personal accomplishment(P < 0.05). A significant odds ratio was found for allthese relationships.

8.78**

3.00
6.03*
15.70
5.83
Mean
SD
Depersonalization

13.48
5.10

11.18
4.34

11.56
3.36

37.08**

5.81*
29.41**
20.67
3.65
Mean
SD
Emotional exhaustion

Automatic thought

17.00
4.56

15.84
4.51

17.26
4.15

23.76**

F (d.f. = [1, 332])
F (d.f. = [1, 332])
F (d.f. = [1, 332])

Low PATN = 66
High PAT
N = 96
Low PATN = 83High PAT
N = 91High NAT

Table 5 Effects of automatic thoughts on burnout

Low NATInteraction
Main effect (PAT)Main effect (NAT)Japan Journal of Nursing Science (2011) 8, 76–86

Burnout has been reported to depend on personal
factors, such as age and marriage, and vocational
factors, such as position and working style. Many
reports suggest that younger nurses have burnout morethan older nurses and that unmarried nurses tend tohave burnout more than married nurses. Regarding thevocational position, health staff experience burnout
more than supervisors, such as managers and chief
nurses, and three-shift (morning, evening, and night)
workers experience burnout more than nurses withother working styles (Kitaoka-Higashiguchi et al., 2004;
Suzuki et al., 2008; Tao & Kubo, 1996; Yamazaki et al.,1999). This study suggested that burnout was morecommon in female nurses in their 20s who had worked
in an obstetrics and gynecology department for 3 years.
These results are similar to those of past studies andindicate that a stress management program should be
developed for nurses in their 20s with clinical experienceof 3 years.

Irrational beliefs of nurses
Dependence, problem avoidance, and helplessness were
found to be the irrational beliefs that affected burnout.
These findings are similar to those of Fukui and Sakano(2000) regarding the irrational beliefs that were related
to depression and anxiety. As burnout is related todepression (Amagasa, 2000), it can be assumed thatsuch irrational beliefs will affect burnout.

Cognitive model of burnout
The automatic thoughts that might affect burnout
showed a significant interaction with emotional exhaus-© 2010 The Authors
Japan Journal of Nursing Science © 2010 Japan Academy of Nursing Science83

T. Ohue et al.

Japan Journal of Nursing Science (2011) 8, 76–86

Table 6 Comparison of the indices of fit among the three models
c2

d.f.

GFI

AGFI

RMSEA

AIC

241.83289.03247.77

72
73
74

0.90
0.88
0.90

0.85
0.82
0.85

0.084
0.094
0.084

307.83353.03309.77

Model
Direct effect and indirect effectStressor → irrational beliefs → automatic thoughts → burnout
Stressor → burnout → irrational beliefs → automatic thoughts

GFI, Goodness of Fit Index; AGFI, Adjusted Goodness of Fit Index; RMSEA, Root Mean Square Error of Approximation; AIC, Akaike’s Information
Criterion.

Conflict with othernursing staff

0.77**

0.76**

0.55**

0.57**

Quantitative
workload

Qualitative
workload

Nursing role
conflict

Conflict withpatients
0.61**

Stressor
Dependence

0.62**

0.31**
Problem avoidance
Helplessness

Irrational beliefs

0.48**
0.43**
0.66**

Negative self-evaluation
0.84**

0.68**–0.44**

Positive automatic thoughts

Negative automatic thoughts

0.91**
0.25 **

Negative evaluation of the future–0.11**

Burnout
0.86 **
Emotional
exhaustion

0.82**
Depersonalization–0.29**
Personal
accomplishment

Figure 2 Final adopted model. **P < 0.01.

tion. The analysis of covariance for automatic thoughts
suggested a strong effect of negative automatic thoughts,
indicating the importance of efforts to decrease thesethoughts, as well as to increase positive automatic
thoughts. This idea is similar to that of Kendall (1992)
and a method to address this problem could decrease
emotional exhaustion.

84

This study was based on the hypothesis that irrational
beliefs and automatic thoughts might be involved inburnout. An analysis of covariance structure revealed astrong direct effect of the recognition of stressors on
burnout. The model of cognitive action that was established by Beck (1990) was developed for patients withdepression, whereas this study investigated nurses© 2010 The Authors
Japan Journal of Nursing Science © 2010 Japan Academy of Nursing ScienceJapan Journal of Nursing Science (2011) 8, 76–86

Cognitive model of burnout for nurses

Table 7 Relationship between burnout and the intention to leave
Want to quit
working as a nurse
Variable
Emotional exhaustion
Depersonalization
Personal accomplishment

Want to switch hospitals
or departments

Want to continue
working as a nurseb

Odds ratiob

Odds ratiob

Odds ratio

0.13
0.16
-0.10

10.14*
10.17**
0.91*

0.08
0.08
-0.01

10.08*
0.99
0.99

-0.13
-0.15
0.09

0.88**
0.86**
10.09**P < 0.05, **P < 0.01.

without a diagnosis of depression. The stressors thatwere strongly related to emotional exhaustion, the main
symptom of burnout, included qualitative and quantitative workload and conflict with patients and burnout
was observed more frequently in young nurses. As emotional exhaustion was related to dependence and a senseof helplessness, the insufficient development of measures
to control stress in young nurses was related to burnout.
The lack of these measures also might be related toproblem avoidance, affecting depersonalization.
Based on these data, we consider it to be necessary toincrease the processing capability at work, the ability tocope with others at work, and the personal independence of young nurses. Strengthening the processing
capability is an approach to “cognition” in order toavoid the recognition of stimulation as stress (Lazarus &Folkman, 1984), as well as to train persons to avoid theincorrect recognition of criticism in a vocational roleas personal criticism (Hochschild, 2000). Therefore,
our model, in which irrational beliefs and automatic
thoughts are associated with exposure to stressors andburnout, forms a theoretical basis for cognitive action
therapy for the prevention of burnout.

Relationship of the intention to resign withburnout
An examination of the relationship between the intention to resign and burnout showed that the nurses who
had hoped to leave their work might have had burnout,
as also shown by Kubo (2007). Therefore, we suggestthat the prevention of burnout is required to reduceturnover and that approaches for stress recognition are
particularly important among the preventive measures.

Limitations of the study and suggestions for a
future study
Clarification of whether the irrational beliefs that affectburnout are a personal factor or beliefs that are createdduring working will allow the adjustment of basic education and in-service training for nurses. This and otherstudies on burnout have been carried out with a crosssectional design and it will be necessary to carry out alongitudinal study to clarify the process from the recognition of stress to burnout. Verification of the model inthis study requires a demonstration that burnout isinhibited by an educational intervention for irrational
beliefs and automatic thoughts.

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© 2010 The Authors
Japan Journal of Nursing Science © 2010 Japan Academy of Nursing Science