Psychosocial risks and their consequences on health and job satisfaction among Spanish police officers.

BACKGROUND: Police officers are exposed to risk and violence, which makes their work highly stressful. According to the Job Demand-Resource model, the working conditions of police officers may affect their health and job satisfaction. The aims of this research were to evaluate the psychosocial factors at work in a sample of municipal police officers from the Valencian Community (Spain) to identify the prevalence of psychosocial risks and their consequences and analyse the influence of psychosocial factors (resource and demands) at work on job satisfaction and health. METHODS: The Unidad de Investigación Psicosocial de la Conducta Organizacional (UNIPSICO) battery was used to evaluate the prevalence and distribution of different levels of risk and their consequences in police officers (n=103). The influence of psychosocial factors (resource and demands) at work on psychosomatic disorders and job satisfaction was examined using stepwise regression analysis. RESULTS: All considered variables showed moderate levels of psychosocial risk for the whole sample. As for the consequences of psychosocial risks, moderate levels of psychosomatic disorders and job satisfaction were also observed. Perceived stress levels and organizational stressors have a negative effect on health and job satisfaction. CONCLUSIONS: To create positive conditions for the health and well-being of police officers, real commitment is required when evaluating psychosocial risks in local police organizations and the establishment of prevention and intervention measures where psychosocial risk factors are detected.

Factor Structure and Measurement Invariance of the Spanish Burnout Inventory Among Professionals Across 17 Countries and Regions.

Studies on the prevalence of burnout in professionals in service organizations who work in direct contact with the clients or users of the organization have concluded that burnout is a serious health disorder that has increased due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A significant advantage of the Spanish Burnout Inventory (SBI) over other instruments is that it provides a broader conceptualization of burnout by including feelings of guilt as a dimension of burnout to explain its development. However, the measurement invariance of the SBI across countries has not been investigated. The purpose of this study was to test the measurement invariance of the SBI among professionals across 17 countries and regions in Europe, Latin America, and Asia, and in different languages. All the countries showed a good fit to the four-factor model, except the Indian sample, which was excluded from the measurement invariance study. Using the alignment method, it was possible to verify the scalar measurement invariance of the four SBI factors across 15 countries and one Spanish region (16 samples). The comparison of estimated latent means indicates that France is the country with the lowest scores on the Enthusiasm factor and the highest scores on the negative factors (Exhaustion, Indolence, and Guilt). In contrast, the Andean countries, Colombia, Peru, and Ecuador, show the highest latent means on the Enthusiasm factor and the lowest means on the negative factors. These results support the validity of the SBI in the countries and regions in Europe and Latin America included in this study.

The Mediator Role of Feelings of Guilt in the Process of Burnout and Psychosomatic Disorders: A Cross-Cultural Study.

Burnout was recently declared by WHO as an "occupational phenomenon" in the International Classification of Diseases 11th revision (ICD-11), recognizing burnout as a serious health issue. Earlier studies have shown that feelings of guilt appear to be involved in the burnout process. However, the exact nature of the relationships among burnout, guilt and psychosomatic disorders remains unclear. The purpose of this study was to investigate the mediator role of feelings of guilt in the relationship between burnout and psychosomatic disorders, and perform a cross-cultural validation of the multi-dimensional model by Gil-Monte in two samples of teachers (Portuguese vs. Spanish). The study sample was composed of 1,266 teachers, 1,062 from Spain, and 204 from Portugal. Burnout was measured by the Spanish Burnout Inventory. Hypotheses were tested together in a path model. The results obtained provide empirical evidence for the mediator role of guilt in the relationship between the Burnout syndrome and psychosomatic disorders in the sample of teachers from Spain and Portugal, and they contribute to the empirical validation of the model by Gil-Monte. The results indicate that guilt should be incorporated as a symptom of burnout in order to identify individuals affected by burnout and profiles or types of burnout to differentiate it from other pathologies like depression.

Influence of some psychosocial factors on mobbing and its consequences among employees working with people with intellectual disabilities.

BACKGROUND: The problem of mobbing has attracted a great deal of attention over the past few years. This concern has increased the study of the phenomena, which has resulted in many scientific publications. Mobbing has been characterized as an emerging risk at work. The aim of this study was to analyse the influence of some psychosocial factors at work - role clarity, interpersonal conflicts and social support - on mobbing and its consequences - that is, inclination towards absenteeism and psychosomatic disorders. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The sample included 422 employees working with people with intellectual disabilities. Structural equation modelling (SEM) was used to test the hypotheses. RESULTS: The Hypothesized model showed an adequate fit to data, and all hypothesized relationships were significant. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study provide support for the mediator role of mobbing in the relationship between high role ambiguity, low social support and high interpersonal conflicts and psychosomatic disorders and inclination towards absenteeism.

[Burnout and job satisfaction among nursing professionals]. / Síndrome de quemarse por el trabajo y satisfacción laboral en profesionales de enfermería.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between burnout and job satisfaction among nursing professionals. The sample consisted of 316 staff nurses. The study was longitudinal, and not randomized. The gap between Time 1 (T1) and Time 2 (T2) was one year. Hierarchical regression analysis showed empirical evidence of the significant and negative effect of burnout (i.e., Emotional exhaustion and Depersonalization dimensions) at T1 on job satisfaction in T2. Significant results were also obtained that showed the influence of job satisfaction at T1 on burnout at T2 (i.e., Depersonalization dimension). The study concludes that there is a bidirectional and longitudinal relationship between burnout and job satisfaction. However, longitudinal effects of burnout at T1 on job satisfaction on T2 (i.e., burnout as antecedent of job satisfaction) are stronger than vice-versa (i.e., job satisfaction as antecedent of burnout).

Incidence of burnout in Spanish nursing professionals: a longitudinal study.

BACKGROUND: Burnout is a psychological response to chronic work-related stress of an interpersonal and emotional nature that appears in professionals in service organizations who work in direct contact with the clients or end-users of the organization. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to examine the incidence of burnout in a sample of staff nurses. DESIGN: The study was longitudinal, and not randomized. The gap between time 1 (T1) and time 2 (T2) was 1 year. SETTINGS: The data were gathered using an anonymous and self-applied questionnaire in different units of 13 Spanish hospitals. PARTICIPANTS: The sample consisted of 316 staff nurses, 53 males (16.8%) and 262 females (83.2%). The percentage of the response obtained was 31.37% of all the questionnaires distributed in T1, and 83.77% of all the questionnaires handed out in T2. The characteristics of the sample were stable over time. METHODS: Burnout was evaluated by the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI-HSS). Descriptive statistics, percentages, and t-test analyses were conducted. RESULTS: The prevalence of burnout was different according to the approach used: (a) following the cut-off points from the American manual, the prevalence was 2.84% in T1 and 1.89% in T2; and considering the clinically derived cut-off points obtained in Holland, the percentage was 1.26% in T1 and .94% in T2. CONCLUSIONS: The results only confirmed the hypothesis formulated applying the American cut-off points in T1. There was a significant increase in the levels of emotional exhaustion from T1 to T2, but there were no significant changes in the levels of personal accomplishment or depersonalization from T1 to T2. When the scores on the three dimensions of the MBI were considered together, a decrease in the incidence of burnout was obtained from T1 to T2. The prevalence of burnout in staff nurses can be modified over time, depending on the criteria used to estimate the prevalence.

Efectos de los conflictos interpersonales sobre el desarrollo del síndrome de quemarse por el trabajo (burnout) y su influencia sobre la salud: un estudio longitudinal en enfermería / Longitudinal study of the influence of interpersonal conflicts in burnout and its influence on health problems among nurses

El objetivo de este estudio fue analizar la influencia de los Conflictos Interpersonales en las organizaciones hospitalarias, sobre el Síndrome de Quemarse por el Trabajo (SQT) (burnout) y sus efectos sobre la salud. La muestra estuvo formada por 316 profesionales de enfermería, y el diseño del estudio fue longitudinal. El SQT se estimó con el Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI-HSS), (Maslach y Jackson 1986). Los Conflictos Interpersonales se evaluaron con una escala formada por 6 ítems que consideraba diferentes fuentes de conflicto (alfa = 0.76, T1;alfa = 0.72, T2). Los Problemas de Salud se evaluaron con 13 ítems que recogen la percepción subjetiva con la que los individuos han experimentado esos problemas en relación con el trabajo (alfa = 0.82, T1; alfa = 0.81, T2). Los análisis de regresión realizados permitieron obtener evidencia empírica de que los Conflictos Interpersonales eran un antecedente significativo de Agotamiento Emocional y de Realización Personal en el Trabajo, mientras que Agotamiento Emocional y Despersonalización eran un antecedente significativo de los Problemas de Salud. Se concluye sobre la importancia de los factores relacionales y emocionales en la prevención del SQT y sus problemas asociados, así como de la necesidad de realizar investigaciones longitudinales.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of interpersonal conflicts on burnout in hospital organizations and its consequences on health. A longitudinal design was employed on a sample of 316 nursing professionals. Burnout was measured by the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI-HSS), (Maslach y Jackson 1986). Different sources of interpersonal conflicts were evaluated by 6 items (alpha = 0.76, T1; alpha = 0.72, T2). Disorders of health were assessed with a scale of 13 items, which summarize the subjective perception of individuals who have experienced these disorders in their jobs (alpha = 0.82, T1; alpha = 0.81, T2). Regression analysis showed that Interpersonal Conflicts were significant predictors of Emotional exhaustion and Personal accomplishment, while Emotional exhaustion and personalization was found to be a significant predictor of Disorders of health. The study concludes that it must take into account the relational and emotional factors to prevent burnout in nurses and the problems associated. Furthermore, in a methodological level, it is necessary to make longitudinal studies.