Burnout Literature Review

Chapter 2: Literature Review

Burnout: The Phenomenon

Burnout is a psychological concern that effects many educators around the country (Bousquet, 2012). This concept has become popular in the education field, especially in the wake of the twenty-first century. There is not a set definition for what burnout is, but the many researchers that have looked into this phenomenon have similar definitions that speak to different variations of “teacher burnout.”

In order to understand the significance of burnout in the education field, it is important for the reader to understand the history of “teacher burnout”. According to Schwab (1989), the term burnout was coined by Herbert Freudenberger, during the 1970’s, whom was a clinical psychologist familiar with the stress responses shown by staff members in “alternative” institutions. Freudenberger’s view on burnout included three components, which include emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and low personal accomplishment. The following explains Freudenberger’s view on the three components of burnout:

Use of the word exhaustion reflects an important underlying assumption of burnout researchers, namely that the burnout syndrome is most relevant for

According to Gupta and Rani, “Teacher burnout is a psychological condition that leads to exhaustion, depersonalization, and decreased teacher achievement and self-worth” (Gupta & Rani, 2014, p. 7). Dr. Beverly Potter (2005) expressed many additional consequences that come with burnout. These consequences include, negative emotions, interpersonal problems, health problems, substance abuse, declining performance, and feeling of meaninglessness. With the knowledge of these negative effects, it is important to educate all those that work in education about what burnout is and prevention steps to avoid any negative effects that may occur as a