Mental Disorders Commons^™

Examining The Evidence Base For Burnout, Renzo Bianchi, Irvin Sam Schonfeld

Publications and Research

Burnout has elicited growing interest among occupational health specialists in recent decades. Since 2019, the World Health Organization has characterized burnout as a syndrome resulting from chronic, unmanageable workplace stress. According to the ICD-11, three symptoms define the entity: feelings of exhaustion, increased mental distance from one’s job, and a sense of ineffectiveness at work, all of which correspond to the structure of the Maslach Burnout Inventory. The ICD-11 includes burnout among the factors that influence health status. This paper calls into question that conceptualization based on a number of lines of evidence. The evidence includes the following: burnout was …

Occupational Depression In Italy: Associations With Health, Economic, And Work-Life Characteristics, Renzo Bianchi, Caterina Fiorilli, Giacomo Angelini, Nicoletta Dozio, Carlo Palazzi, Gloria Palazzi, Benedetto Vitiello, Irvin Sam Schonfeld

Publications and Research

Background: The Occupational Depression Inventory (ODI) reflects a new approach to job-related distress centered on work-attributed depressive symptoms. The instrument was developed with reference to the characterization of major depression found in the DSM-5. The ODI has been validated in English, French, and Spanish. This study (a) investigated the psychometric and structural properties of the ODI’s Italian version and (b) inquired into the nomological network of occupational depression. Methods: A convenience sample of 963 employed individuals was recruited in Italy (69.9% female; mean age = 40.433). We notably relied on exploratory structural equation modeling bifactor analysis, common-practice …

The Occupational Depression Inventory: A New Tool For Clinicians And Epidemiologists, Renzo Bianchi, Irvin Sam Schonfeld

Publications and Research

Background: Depressive symptoms induced by insurmountable job stress and sick leave for mental health reasons have become a focal concern among occupational health specialists. The present study introduces the Occupational Depression Inventory (ODI), a measure designed to quantify the severity of work-attributed depressive symptoms and establish provisional diagnoses of job-ascribed depression. The ODI comprises nine symptom items and a subsidiary question assessing turnover intention. Methods: A total of 2254 employed individuals were recruited in the U.S., New Zealand, and France. We examined the psychometric and structural properties of the ODI as well as the nomological network of work-attributed depressive symptoms. …

A Five-Sample Confirmatory Factor Analytic Study Of Burnout-Depression Overlap, Renzo Bianchi, Irvin Sam Schonfeld, Jay Verkuilen

Publications and Research

Objective: It has been asserted that burnout—a condition ascribed to unresolvable job stress—should not be mistaken for a depressive syndrome. In this confirmatory factor analytic study, the validity of this assertion was examined.

Methods: Five samples of employed individuals, recruited in Switzerland and France, were mobilized for this study (N = 3,113). Burnout symptoms were assessed with the Shirom–Melamed Burnout Measure, the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI)—General Survey, and the MBI for Educators. Depressive symptoms were measured with the PHQ‐9.

Results: In all five samples, the latent factors pertaining to burnout’s components correlated on average more highly with the latent Depression …

Depression, Anxiety, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder And A History Of Pervasive Gender-Based Violence Among Women Asylum Seekers Who Have Undergone Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting: A Retrospective Case Review, Hazel Lever, Deborah Ottenheimer, Jimmitti Teysir, Elizabeth Singer, Holly G. Atkinson

Publications and Research

We sought to evaluate the frequency of anxiety, depression, PTSD, and any experiences of violence in women who had undergone Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) and were seeking asylum in the United States. We undertook a retrospective qualitative descriptive study of FGM/C cases seen in an asylum clinic over a 2-year period. Standardized questionnaires provided quantitative scores for anxiety, depression and PTSD. Clients’ personal and physician medical affidavits were analyzed for experiences of violence. Of the 13 cases, anxiety and depression were exhibited by 92 and 100% of women, while all seven women screened for PTSD had symptoms. Qualitative analysis revealed …

Burnout Or Depression: Both Individual And Social Issue, Bianchi Renzo, Irvin Sam Schonfeld, Eric Laurent

Publications and Research

In view of the profound problems attached to the construct of burnout, we recommended that occupational health specialists focus on (job-related) depression rather than burnout to help workers more effectively. Epstein and Privitera (April 8, 1398) rejected our recommendation on the grounds that burnout is not a “purely individual syndrome”. Problematically, Epstein and Privitera attributed to us an idea that is not ours. In these authors’ view, equating burnout with depression is synonymous with mistakenly individualising a social problem. For two reasons, the argument that depression cannot replace burnout because burnout is a social problem whereas depression is an individual …

Consequences Of Job Stress For The Psychological Well-Being Of Teachers, Irvin Sam Schonfeld, Renzo Bianchi, Peter Luehring-Jones

Publications and Research

This chapter examines research on the relationship between job stressors and mental health (depressive symptoms, burnout, and mental disorders such as depression) in teachers. Teachers are exposed daily to job stressors (e.g., student disruptiveness) that have been linked to adverse mental health effects. Epidemiologic research indicates that when compared to members of other groups, teachers experience higher rates of mental disorder, although some studies question that conclusion. Large-scale studies indicate when compared to members of other occupational groups, teachers are at higher risk for exposure to workplace violence, with its adverse mental health consequences. Longitudinal research has linked teaching-related stressors …

Editorial: Depression, Burnout, And Other Mood Disorders: Interdisciplinary Approaches, Eric Laurent, Bianchi Renzo, Irvin Sam Schonfeld, Pierre Vandel

Publications and Research

Various perspectives on mood disorders and psychopathology are brought into perspective. The paper underlines (i) an interdisciplinary perspective and a complexity-oriented approach and (ii) an interest in both basic problems in science and potential far-reaching consequences of research applications.

The “Burnout” Construct: An Inhibitor Of Public Health Action?, Bianchi Renzo, Irvin Sam Schonfeld, Eric Laurent

Publications and Research

The prevention and treatment of the “burnout syndrome” within the critical care community is an important objective of the Moss et al. Burnout in the occupational area is based on the idea that burnout is especially common in individuals who care for critically ill patients. We think that the authors’ observations and recommendations are diminished by the fact that studies of burnout’s prevalence are methodologically problematic. The current definition and use of the burnout construct may in fact be detrimental to public health decision making.

Culture Ontogeny: Lifespan Development Of Religion And The Ethics Of Spiritual Counselling, Glen Milstein, Amy Manierre

Publications and Research

The counsellor has an ethical obligation to treat the whole person. Humans are cultural beings and the foundation of most cultures is religion. Religion and culture are received from our early relation~ ships and modified through later relationships across the lifespan. The paper introduces the term "culture ontogeny" to emphasize that this is a biological process wherein abstract ideas of culture and religion become material in the developing neurophysiology of each brain. A framework and methods are offered to examine the changing roles of religion in clients' emotional self~ structure, inclusive of those who describe themselves as spiritual, not religious. …

Psychological Care For Persons Of Diverse Religions: A Collaborative Continuum, Glen Milstein, Anne Marie Yali

Publications and Research

The purpose of this paper is to describe to psychologists and other clinicians a continuum of mental health care for persons of diverse religions. The continuum delineates boundaries between clinical care provided by mental health professionals and religious care provided by clergy, as well as describes pathways of collaboration across these boundaries. A prevention science based model of Clergy Outreach and Professional Engagement (COPE) is offered to guide this collaboration. The model describes a continuum that moves from the care already present in religious communities, through professional clinical care provided in response to dysfunction and returns persons to their own …

School-Based Screening To Identify At-Risk Students Not Already Known To School Professionals: The Columbia Suicide Screen, Michelle A. Scott, Holly C. Wilcox, Irvin Sam Schonfeld, Mark Davies, Roger C. Hicks, J. Blake Turner, David Shaffer

Publications and Research

Objectives.Wesought todeterminethedegreeofoverlapbetweenstudents identified through school-based suicide screening and those thought to be at risk by school administrative and clinical professionals. Methods. Students from7 high schools in theNewYorkmetropolitan area completed the Columbia Suicide Screen; 489 of the 1729 students screened had positive results. The clinical status of 641 students (73% of those who had screened positive and 23%of thosewho had screened negative) was assessedwithmodules from the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children. School professionals nominated by their principal and unaware of students’ screening and diagnostic status were asked to indicate whether they were concerned about the emotional well-being of each participating student. …