Recieved: 12/01/2024
Accepted: 03/17/2025
Published: 04/09/2025
Keywords: psychological well-being; professional health; social workers; emotional burnout; depression; anxiety; stress; social support; coping techniques
Pages: 37-52
DOI: 10.11621/npj.2025.0203
Available online: 09.04.2025
Zinchenko, Yu.P. , Shaigerova, L.A. , Vakhantseva, O.V., Evdokimov, A.Yu. (2025). Specific Aspects of Professional Psychological Well-Being of Social Workers Providing Support to Veterans of Military Conflicts and Their Family Members. National Psychological Journal, 20(2) , 37-52. https://doi.org/10.11621/npj.2025.0203
Copied to Clipboard
CopyBackground. The relevance of the study is determined by the need to maintain the professional effectiveness of social workers who provide personalized support to veterans of military conflicts and their family’s veterans of military conflicts and their families. Given the high risk of such activities for the mental health and well-being of professionals themselves, timely diagnosis can help prevent its negative consequences, including the prevention of emotional burnout.
Objective. Diagnosis of the level and specificity of burnout, investigation of its connection with negative emotional states and sources of perceived socio-psychological support and search for its predictors in social workers.
Study Participants. Social workers (N = 62) aged between 20 and 66 years, of whom 6 were male. Methods. The Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI), Depression Anxiety and Stress Scales (DASS-21), Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), and Assessing ways of coping with negative emotional states.
Results. The level of personal burnout in respondents is significantly higher than the level of professional burnout and burnout related to clients. The levels of all three types of burnout are directly related to measures of depression, anxiety, and stress. Client-related burnout is inversely weakly related to perceived social support. Different types of activities that most often help to cope with negative emotions, their relationship with burnout and burnout predictor were identified.
Conclusions. The prevalence of personal burnout among social workers over other types suggests that motivation to help target categories protects them from professional burnout and burnout related to clients. Of the sources of support, family and friends were the most important contributors to burnout reduction, and browsing the Internet, immersing oneself in work, exercising, watching movies, and sleeping were found to be effective coping techniques. The only predictor of burnout is stress, which emphasizes the necessity of its prevention at the individual and especially at the organizational level.
Ahmed, F., Xiong, Z., Faraz, N.A., Arslan, A. (2023). The interplay between servant leadership, psychological safety, trust in a leader and burnout: assessing causal relationships through a three-wave longitudinal study. International Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics, 29, 912–924. https://doi.org/10.1080/10803548.2022.2086755
Allgood, M., Jensen, U., Stritch, J. (2024). Work-Family Conflict and Burnout Amid COVID-19: Exploring the Mitigating Effects of Instrumental Leadership and Social Belonging. Review of Public Personnel Administration, 44(1), 139–160. https://doi.org/10.1177/0734371X221101308
Alshammari, M.H., Alboliteeh, M. (2023). Moral courage, burnout, professional competence, and compassion fatigue among nurses. Nursing Ethics, 30(7-8), 1068–1082. https://doi.org/10.1177/09697330231176032
Ausín, B., Castellanos, M.A., González-Sanguino, C., Vakhantseva, O.V., Almazova, O.V., Shaigerova, L.A., Dolgikh, A.G., Muñoz, M. (2020). The Psychological Impact of Six Weeks of Lockdown as a Consequence of COVID-19 and the Importance of Social Support: A Cross-Cultural Study Comparing Spanish and Russian Populations. Psychology in Russia: State of the Art, 13(4), 89–105. https://doi.org/10.11621/pir.2020.0406
Beder, J., Postiglione, P. (2013). Social work in the Veterans Health Administration (VA) System: rewards, challenges, roles and interventions. Social Work in Health Care, 52(5), 421–433. https://doi.org/10.1080/00981389.2012.737906
Bloeser, K.J., Bausman, M. (2020). A Scoping Review of Contemporary Social Work Practice with Veterans. Research on Social Work Practice, 30(1), 40–53. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049731519837355
Borritz, M., Rugulies, R., Bjorner, J.B., Villadsen, E., Mikkelsen, O.A., Kristensen, T.S. (2006). Burnout among employees in human service work: design and baseline findings of the PUMA study. Scandinavian Journal of Public Health, 34(1), 49–58. https://doi.org/10.1080/14034940510032275
Bui, T., Zackula, R., Dugan, K., Ablah, E. (2021). Workplace Stress and Productivity: A Cross-Sectional Study. Kansas Journal of Medicine, 14, 42–45. https://doi.org/10.17161/kjm.vol1413424
Buscariolli, A., Kouvonen, A., Kokkinen, L., Halonen, J., Koskinen, A., Väänänen, A. (2018). Human service work, gender and antidepressant use: a nationwide register-based 19-year follow-up of 752 683 women and men. Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 75(6), 401–406. https://doi.org/10.1136/oemed-2017-104803
Freeman, R.C. Jr., Sukuan, N., Tota, N.M., Bell, S.M., Harris, A.G., Wang, H.L. (2020). Promoting Spiritual Healing by Stress Reduction Through Meditation for Employees at a Veterans Hospital: A CDC Framework-Based Program Evaluation. Workplace Health & Safety, 68(4), 161–170. https://doi.org/10.1177/2165079919874795
Freudenberger, H.J. (1974). Staff burnout. Journal of Social Issues, 30(1), 159–165. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-4560.1974.tb00706.x
Hakanen, J.J., Schaufeli, W.B. (2012). Do burnout and work engagement predict depressive symptoms and life satisfaction? A three-wave seven-year prospective study. Journal of Affective Disorders, 141(2-3), 415–424. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2012.02.043
Hirvikallio, J., Haaranen, A., Hult, M. (2024). Psychological safety, social support, and commitment among nurse managers: A cross-sectional study. Nordic Journal of Nursing Research, 44, 1–7. https://doi.org/10.1177/20571585241238844
Jimenez-Gomez, C., Sawhney, G., Albert, K.M. (2021). Impact of COVID-19 on the Applied Behavior Analysis Workforce: Comparison across Remote and Nonremote Workers. Behavior Analysis in Practice, 14(4), 873–882. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40617-021-00625-0
Kang, M., Selzer, R., Gibbs, H., Bourke, K., Hudaib, A.R., Gibbs, J. (2019). Mindfulness-based intervention to reduce burnout and psychological distress, and improve wellbeing in psychiatry trainees: a pilot study. Australasian Psychiatry, 27(3), 219–224. https://doi.org/10.1177/1039856219848838
Kerrissey, M.J., Hayirli, T.C., Bhanja, A., Stark, N., Hardy, J., Peabody, C.R. (2022). How psychological safety and feeling heard relate to burnout and adaptation amid uncertainty. Health Care Management Review, 47, 308–316. https://doi.org/10.1097/HMR.0000000000000338
Kinman, G., Teoh, K., Harriss, A. (2020). Supporting the well-being of healthcare workers during and after COVID-19. Occupational Medicine, 70(5), 294–296. https://doi.org/10.1093/occmed/kqaa096
Kristensen, T.S., Borritz, M., Villadsen, E., Christensen, K.B. (2005). The Copenhagen Burnout Inventory: A new tool for the assessment of burnout. Work & Stress, 19(3), 192–207. https://doi.org/10.1080/02678370500297720
Lara-Cinisomo, S., Fujimoto, E.M., Santens, R.L. (2019). Feasibility of a Mindfulness-Based Intervention for Caregivers of Veterans: A Pilot Study. Journal of Holistic Nursing, 37(4), 322–337. https://doi.org/10.1177/0898010119831580
Leonova, A.B. (2007). Mental reliability of professional and modern technologies of stress management. Vestnik Moskovskogo universiteta. Seriya 14. Psikhologiya = Vestnik of Moscow University. Series 14. Psychology, (3), 69–81. (In Russ.)
Leonova, A.B., Blinnikova, I.V., Kapitsa, M.S. (2019). Transformation of the system of cognitive resources during increasing emotional tension. Vestnik Moskovskogo universiteta. Seriya 14. Psikhologiya = Vestnik of Moscow University. Series 14. Psychology, (1), 69–90. (In Russ.). https://doi.org/10.11621/vsp.2019.01.69
Lidwall, U., Bill, S., Palmer, E., Bohlin, C. (2018). Mental disorder sick leave in Sweden: A population study. Work, 59, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.3233/WOR-172672
Lovibond, P.F., Lovibond, S.H. (1995). The structure of negative emotional states: Comparison of the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS) with the Beck Depression and Anxiety Inventories. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 33(3), 335–343. https://doi.org/10.1016/0005-7967(94)00075-U
Maddock, A. (2024). The Relationships between Stress, Burnout, Mental Health and Well-Being in Social Workers. The British Journal of Social Work, 54(2), 668–686. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bcad232
Maslach, C. (1976). Burned-out. Human Behavior, 5, 16–22.
Maslach, C., Schaufeli, W.B., Leiter, M.P. (2001). Job burnout. Annual Review of Psychology, 52, 397–422. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.52.1.397
Miller, J.J., Grise-Owens, E. (2022). The Impact of COVID-19 on Social Workers: An Assessment of Peritraumatic Distress. British Journal of Social Work, 22(3), 674–691. https://doi.org/10.1177/14680173211013243
Nielsen, M.B., Johannessen, H.A., Christensen, J.O., Finne, L.B. (2023). Emotional dissonance and burnout among child welfare workers: The moderating role of social support from colleagues, supervisors, and organization. Journal of Social Work, 23(4), 615–635. https://doi.org/10.1177/1468017322114364
Purvanova, R.K., Muros, J.P. (2010). Gender differences in burnout: A meta-analysis. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 77(2), 168–185. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2010.04.006
Rantonen, O., Alexanderson, K., Pentti, J., Kjeldgård, L., Hämäläinen, J., Mittendorfer-Rutz, E., Kivimäki, M., Vahtera, J., Salo, P. (2017). Trends in work disability with mental diagnoses among social workers in Finland and Sweden in 2005–2012. Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences, 26(6), 644–654. https://doi.org/10.1017/S2045796016000597
Savaya, R., Levin, L., Roziner, I. (2021). Social Workers in Israel: Daily Stressors, Work Benefits, Burnout and Well-Being. British Journal of Social Work, 51(1), 318–339. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bcaa087
Shudofsky, L., Mattetson, A. (2021). Veteran services in macro social work practice. Encyclopedia of Social Work, 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780199975839.013.407
Smeds, M.R., Janko, M.R., Allen, S., Amankwah, K., Arnell, T., Ansari, P., Balters, M., Hess, D., Ferguson, E., Jackson, P., Kimbrough, M.K., Knight, D., Johnson, M., Porter, M., Shames, B.D., Schroll, R., Shelton, J., Sussman, J., Yoo, P. (2020). Burnout and its relationship with perceived stress, self-efficacy, depression, social support, and programmatic factors in general surgery residents. The American Journal of Surgery, 219(6), 907–912. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amjsurg.2019.07.004
Timofeeva, M.G. (2023). Professional burnout in social workers. Vestnik Severo-Vostochnogo federal’nogo universiteta im. M.K. Ammosova. Seriya: Pedagogika. Psikhologiya. Filosofiya = Bulletin of the North-Eastern Federal University named after M.K. Ammosov. Series: Pedagogy. Psychology. Philosophy, (1), 64–72.
Ushkov, F.I., Shaigerova, L.A., Dolgikh, A.G., Almazova, O.V. (2020). Colony educators and psychologists as “significant others” for juvenile offenders while serving their sentences. Vestnik Moskovskogo universiteta. Seriya 14. Psikhologiya = Vestnik of Moscow University. Series 14. Psychology, (3), 88–119. (In Russ.). https://doi.org/10.11621/vsp.2020.03.05
Vakhantseva, O.V., Shaigerova, L.A., Almazova, O.V., Dolgikh, A.G. (2025). Development and approbation of a toolkit for diagnosing the needs and competencies of specialists supporting combat veterans and members of their families. In: Scientific bases of complex interdisciplinary rehabilitation, habilitation, resocialization and readaptation of combat veterans and members of their families. In: Y.P. Zinchenko, (ed.). Moscow: Moscow Univ. Press. (In Russ.)
Vodopyanova, N.E., Starchenkova, E.с. (2008). Burnout syndrome: diagnostics and prevention. 2nd ed. St. Petersburg: Piter Publ. (In Russ.)
Williams, E.S., Rathert, C., Buttigieg, S.C. (2020). The Personal and Professional Consequences of Physician Burnout: A Systematic Review of the Literature. Medical Care Research and Review, 77(5), 371–386. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077558719856787
Yoon, H.Y., Choi, Y.K. (2019). The Development and Validation of the Perceived Competence Scale for Disaster Mental Health Workforce. Psychiatry Investigation, 16(11), 816–828. https://doi.org/10.30773/pi.2019.0140
Zinchenko, Y.P., Shaigerova, L.A., Almazova, O.V., Shilko, R.S., Vakhantseva, O.V., Dolgikh, A.G., Veraksa, A.N., Kalimullin, A.M. (2021). The Spread of COVID-19 in Russia: Immediate Impact on Mental Health of University Students. Psychological Studies, 66, 291–302. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12646-021-00610-1
Zimet, G., Dahlem, N., Zimet, S., Farley, G. (1988). The Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support. Journal of Personality Assessment, 52, 30–41. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327752jpa5201_2
Zinchenko, Yu.P. , Shaigerova, L.A. , Vakhantseva, O.V., Evdokimov, A.Yu.. Specific Aspects of Professional Psychological Well-Being of Social Workers Providing Support to Veterans of Military Conflicts and Their Family Members. // National Psychological Journal 2025. 2. Pages37-52. doi: 10.11621/npj.2025.0203
Copied to Clipboard
Copy