Caring for the carers: The influence of stress, burnout, and experiences of compassion on educational psychologists’ work-based motivations.

doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-4276836/v1

This study investigated the constructs of Compassion Satisfaction, Compassion Fatigue, Work-based Stress, and Burnout among EPs, aiming to understand their impact on the motivations (thoughts and actions) toward changes in working practices and contexts. The paper also introduces Compassion Fatigue/Satisfaction to the field of educational psychology, which has been extensively studied in other helping professions but still needs to be explored in the EP field. The multi-dimensional nature of the role of compassion in caring professional practice is explored. A cross-sectional descriptive design study asked 201 EP participants to complete a range of measures relating to the focus variables, capturing working-life contexts, patterns, and work-based motivations. The findings revealed that EPs experience higher levels of Compassion Satisfaction and Burnout, while Compassion Fatigue remains relatively low. Work-based stress was primarily attributed to a lack of control and autonomy rather than workload pressures. Burnout emerged as a significant predictor of motivations to seek a different job/career, explore alternative options, or make changes within the EP role. These findings contribute to understanding EPs' working-life experiences and offer insights into the factors influencing their motivations and well-being, paralleling similar findings in the teaching profession. The results highlight the importance of addressing work-related stress and burnout to support EPs and enhance professional practices and how compassion satisfaction may be harnessed as a mediating variable.

Compassion Fatigue

Burnout

Work Stress

professional practice

The Department for Education’s (2023) report into Educational Psychology (EP) workforce insights and impact revealed that services report the retention of EPs as a critical concern (DfE, 2023). A quarter of EPs surveyed (N = 928) reported they planned to move to a different job in educational psychology (DfE, 2023, pg. 42) and EPs interviewed shared that a high statutory workload was a critical influence in their desire to make changes to their working life contexts and/or patterns (DfE, 2023, pg. 45–46). This survey has provided expository insight into EP working life experiences and the potential influence these on retention. However, as a survey and interview/focus methodology were used, causality cannot be clearly established. There is an associated distinct lack of research exploring the causal relationship between working life variables, such as work based stress, and EPs work-based motivations, such as seeking to make changes in work contexts and practices. (Sewell, Coley, Gossman & Park, UNDER REVIEW). This knowledge is needed given a recruitment crisis for EP roles and an accompanying need to retain the workforce once in post (DfE, 2023; Lyonette, Atfield, Baldauf & Owen, 2019).

As such, the current study sought to provide insight into EPs’ working life experiences, including Compassion Satisfaction (CS), Compassion Fatigue (CF), Work-based Stress (SS), and Burnout (BO), and the potential influence of these variables on participant’s thoughts and actions towards changes in working practices and contexts. The psychological constructs of CS and CF have been well-researched in medical professions. However, they are yet to be explored for an EP sample, so the study had the additional goal of documenting these phenomena.

EP working-life experiences

Sewell et al. (UNDER REVIEW) summarised a foundation of existing research exploring EPs’ perceptions of their working-life experiences. Most existing studies have examined workload allocation at the service level (DfE, 2023; Imich, 1999; Islam, 2013; Marsh & Higgins, 2018) This literature has shown that most EP work-based time is, or should be, dedicated to ‘direct support’, including school visits and prepping for school visits (Imich, 1999; Marsh & Higgins, 2018). Within some studies, EPs’ perceptions of their workload and work tasks have been explored. These include pressures arising from workloads and not enough time to complete work tasks, managing competing tasks and task demands, and stress arising from adapting to new ways of working, such as a traded services model (DfE, 2023; Gersch & Teuma, 2005; Imich, 1999; Islam, 2013). Arguably, there is a need to expand the current literature. Several current issues within the EP professional landscape support this argument.

EP workforce reviews

Several current issues within the EP professional landscape support this argument, and these are outlined across two recent EP workforce studies commissioned by the Department for Education (Lyonette et al 2019; Atfield et al, 2023). These papers discuss changes to the composition of the workforce, including the growing demand for EPs and EP services, as well as the current recruitment and retention issues within the EP workforce, which are explained by complex, inter-relating, systemic and socio-political factors. Both papers highlight the increasing demand for EP services. In 2019, 93% of LA PEPs reported that they were experiencing higher demand for EP services than it was possible to meet (Lyonette et al, 2019) and in 2023, Atfield et al concluded that “demand for EPs often exceeded supply” (Atfield et al., 2023, pg. 101).

Demand for EP services is driven by the increase in demand for EHCPs (Atfield et al, 2023). Since the introduction of the Children and Families Act (2014), there has been a notable year-on-year increase in statutory requests for assessment. Based on school census data, the Department for Education (2023a) reports that requests for assessments have risen by 23% since 2021, leading to an additional 43, 726 requests for assessment, each typically necessitating a request for psychological advice from an EP. Furthermore, statistics indicate an overall increase in children with identified SEN at the ‘SEN Support’ level (i.e., those below the threshold of needing an EHCP), rising by 4.7% from 2022, giving a total of 1,183,384 pupils in schools in England (DfE, 2023b). This necessitates increased demand for EPs in their core role of supporting children, schools and families at a more systemic level and/or preventative, early intervention level, which is described by Atfield et al (2023, p. 102) as “the most impactful aspect of an EP’s role.” Atfield et al (2023) described a ‘vicious cycle’ in which increased demand for statutory work is reducing capacity for EPs to engage in such preventative and systemic work.

Such changes to work composition are thought to be impacting EP morale and job satisfaction. 58% of EPs are satisfied with the work they are doing, and the most common reason for dissatisfaction is the amount of statutory work, which was explained by finding the work less interesting, repetitive, feeling over-worked, concerns about having limited impact and a lack of on-going relationships with children and families (Atfield et al, 2023). Reduced job satisfaction appears to be linked with growth in alternative employment opportunities for EPs (Atfield et al, 2023). In 2019, higher prevalence of ‘portfolio working’ (engaging in a mixture of LA and private work) was highlighted, with 47% of LA PEPs reporting that their EPs were also engaging in private practice (Lyonette et al, 2019). This proportion has increased to 76% in 2023 (Atfield et al, 2023). As well as changes to work composition, EP pay is a reason for recruitment issues by 48% of PEPs (Atfield et al, 2023).

Finally, issues relating to workload and well-being are discussed. 78% of EPs reported a perception that their workload was increasing (Lyonette et al, 2019) and workloads are a key issue in recruitment and retention (Atfield et al, 2023). Some PEPs reported that EPs are moving to part-time work to tend to their well-being, which also reduces overall capacity in the workforce (Atfield et al., 2023). These workforce studies offer insights based upon EP and PEP subjective perceptions about the profession as a whole, via survey data, interviews and focus groups. The specific impact of factors relating to workload and well-being on EP retention and motivations to change their working practices has not yet been quantitatively established.

Stress and Burnout

These broader contextual issues are anecdotally reported as influencing EP work-based SS and BO. SS (also called ‘occupational stress’) has been conceptualised as an adverse change in physical and mental health related to a workplace environment that an employee feels poses a threat or challenge (Colligan & Higgins, 2008). Influential factors for SS include hours worked, workload, lack of control and autonomy, complex relationships, workplace harassment and bullying, and lack of psychological coping mechanisms (Colligan & Higgins, 2008; Davies, 2022). SS has been shown to occur cross-culturally (Moreno Fortes, Tian & Huebner, 2020). It has also been reported as a general workplace health hazard in the UK (Chandola, 2010). If left unresolved, it can influence various adverse outcomes, including cardiovascular disease, depression and anxiety, and increased sick absences (Chandola, 2010). Although there is limited research on EPs, research has found that clinical psychologists are at risk of SS if adequate self-care is not practiced (Rupert & Dorociak, 2019).

BO is conceptualised as a negative response to prolonged and intractable SS (Maslach & Jackson, 1981; Maslach, Jackson & Leiter, 1996). The experience of BO involves high levels of emotional exhaustion and low self-efficacy, a lack of energy and emotional skills to cope with work demands, and experiences of depersonalisation (Maslach & Jackson, 1981; Maslach, Jackson & Leiter, 1996). As with SS, there needs to be more research exploring BO in EPs. However, there has been much exploration of the phenomena among teachers. BO in secondary school teachers has been associated with psychological outcomes of irritability, loneliness, powerlessness, and physical health outcomes of hypertension, cardiovascular disease, asthma, muscle pain, and loss of appetite (García-Carmona, Marín, & Aguayo, 2019). It has been consistently linked to lowered job satisfaction and increased intention to quit teaching (García-Carmona et al., 2019; Madigan & Kim, 2021a). In addition, McCormack, MacIntyre, O'Shea, Herring & Campbell (2018) conducted a systematic literature review of research exploring BO in practitioner psychologists, including clinical psychologists in the UK and school psychologists in the USA. BO levels were moderate to high and primarily related to the experience of emotional exhaustion (McCormack et al., 2018). Workload and work demands were the most common factors reported to contribute to BO (McCormack et al., 2018).

Compassion fatigue and compassion satisfaction

Figley (1995) coined the term ‘Compassion Fatigue’ (CF) to refer to “natural behaviors and emotions that arise from knowing about a traumatizing event experienced by a significant other – the stress resulting from helping or wanting to help a traumatized person” (Figley, 1995a, p. xiv, cited in Rankin, 2022). Negative emotional responses arising from exposure to the trauma of another, and stress arising from challenges faced in supporting the other, have also been termed ‘Secondary Traumatic Stress’ (STS). In some cases, the terms CF and STS are used interchangeably and further used synonymously with identification of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (Essary, Barza & Thurston, 2020). However, Adams, Boscarino and Figley (2006) distinguished CF from STS, believing that CF is a multi-dimensional construct that also encompasses workplace burnout. Therefore, CF is a multi-dimensional psychological construct involving the emotional experiences of STS and consisting of the individual experiencing “reduced capacity or interest in being empathetic” towards others (Adams et al., 2006, p.2).

A third component of CF is job burnout as exposure to high emotional work, with a reduced capacity for empathy, can “leave the caring professional vulnerable to burnout” (Adams et al., 2006, p.2). CF, as opposed to STS alone or a diagnosis of PTSD, has also been positioned as a psychological phenomenon occurring specifically in the helping professions (Peters, 2018). In definitions of CF, there is a clear element of workplace performance. Coetzee and Klopper (2010) reified CF through concept analysis resulting in the following comprehensive definition:

CF is the final result of a progressive and cumulative process that evolves from compassion stress after a period of unrelieved compassion discomfort, which is caused by prolonged, continuous, and intense contact with patients, the use of self, and exposure to stress. The manifestations increase in intensity with each progressive state, but the indicative signs of CF are the physical effects of burnout, absence of energy, and accident proneness, the emotional effects of breakdown, apathy, and a desire to quit, the social effects of unresponsiveness, callousness, and indifference towards patients, the spiritual effects of poor judgment and disinterest in introspection, and the intellectual effect of disorderliness. (Coetzee & Klopper, p. 239)

This definition of CF expands on those previous by including reference to the progress and effects of CF beyond that of job burnout, as initially postulated by Adams et al. (2006); physical fatigue, work errors, apathy, breakdown, workplace attrition, and spiritual/moral decline are additionally included. Peters (2018) similarly pinpoints the experience of “spiritual weariness, doubting one’s own values” (Peters, 2018, pg. 468) as a central defining aspect of CF, in line with Coetzee and Klopper (2010).

In summary, CF is defined as a psychological phenomenon characterized by reduced empathy for others because of repeated exposure to stressful events and the experience of STS through exposure to the trauma of others. Reduced empathy over time negatively influences job satisfaction leading to job burnout. CF is positioned as occurring within the helping professions. High levels of CF have been shown to influence individuals to leave helping professional roles (Forsyth, Lopez, & Lewis, 2022; Sinclair, Raffin-Bouchal, Venturato, Mijovic-Kondejewski, & Smith-MacDonald, 2017; Sorenson, Bolick, Wright, & Hamilton, 2016).

CS/CF research in education professionals

Despite having strong relevance for understanding and mitigating workplace stress in helping professions, compassion fatigue has not been researched at all in EPs. This is notable in comparison to the strength of the research literature exploring CF in other helping professions, such as nursing and the mental health workforce (Forsyth et al., 2022; Hunsaker, Chen, Maughan, & Heaston, 2015; Sorenson et al., 2016; Sinclair et al., 2017, Van Mol, Kompanje, Benoit, Bakker, & Nijkamp, 2015; Turgoose & Maddox, 2017; Yang & Kim, 2012).

A small research literature exploring STS and CF in teachers and other practitioner psychologists offers a comparison for the educational psychology profession. Rankin (2022) provided the only existing literature overview exploring STS in teachers, conducted from an American perspective, concluding that it poses a significant need in educators, with more CF/CS research required. Stevens and Al-Abbadey (2023) conducted a small scale (N = 10) qualitative investigation of compassion fatigue in practitioner psychologists. The sample included counselling, clinical, and health psychologists, but did not include educational psychologist representation. The findings suggested that compassionate practice was important but hindered by work pressures, personal circumstances, and challenging patients (Stevens & Al-Abbadey, 2023). The findings from these related professions support the hypothesis that CF will also be present in an EP sample.

Summary

There needs to be more research exploring the EP experiences of SS and BO and the potential relationship of these to work-based motivations. Despite its well-documented prevalence in other caregiving professions, CF/CS still needs to be explored in an EP sample. The current research aimed to address the absence of an understanding of the levels and influence of these variables on EPs’ working lives with the following objectives:

Establish the prevalence of SS, BO, CF, and CS in a sample of practicing EPs.
Explore if levels of SS, BO, CF, and CS predict EPs’ motivations to change work contexts and practices

Research design, participants

The study utilised a cross-sectional descriptive design with a sample of EPs (N = 201) who voluntarily partook in an online survey. Ethical approval was granted by the University of Worcester’s Ethics Advisory Board. Participant inclusion criteria for participation was being an HCPC registered EP practicing in some capacity. The wording of ‘some capacity’ was used as we wanted EPs working in various contexts, such as part-time and full-time work, local authority and independent, and all other potentialities.

Procedure and measures

Data collection began on 12th January 2023 and ended on 11th March 2023 when the participant recruitment goal of N = 200 had been met. Jisc.com hosted the online survey. The survey was advertised to eligible EPs on the research team’s social media platforms and via email invitation within the research team’s existing EP networks, with the request for email recipients to share more widely in their extended networks. Participants were requested to complete the following self-report measures.

Demographic questionnaire

The instrument assessed the demographic characteristics of the sample. Information was collected for age, gender, ethnicity, disability, geographic region, time active in the profession since qualifying as an E, and professional level (main grade EP, specialist senior EP, Senior EP, Principal EP, or ‘other’).

Professional Quality of Life Scale (ProQoL)

The ProQol (Stamm, 2009) uses Likert-style responses across 30 items. These range from never (0) to very often (5). The scale has three subscales: Compassion Satisfaction (CS), Compassion Fatigue (CF), and Burnout (BO). CS scores higher than 33 reflect positive experiences of compassion in professional roles relating to more general job satisfaction. If a score higher than 17 is present on the CF subscale, then CF is likely to be experienced. A score higher than 22 on the BO scale indicates the experience or risk of burnout. The ProQol has been established as a reliable measure with high Cronbach Alpha’s reported for each sub-scale and construct validity established (Stamm, 2005). To our knowledge, this is the first time ProQol has been used with an EP sample. As such, the whole scale Cronbach Alpha was 0.688 and was found to be the following for subscales CS = 0.897, CF = 0.824, BO = 0.797. These scores show that the ProQol also demonstrates construct validity for EP professionals.

The Brief Job Stress Questionnaire (BJSQ)

The BJSQ uses Likert-style responses across 55 items. These range from Very much so (1) to Not at all (4). There are three subscales: Stress Relating to Work (WS), Stress Response (SR), and Social Factors (SF). WS encompasses both qualitative and quantitative demands of the job and perceptions of control. SR involves psychological stress responses, such as negative thoughts, and physical stress responses, such as muscle tension. SF encompasses social support that helps an individual manage stress, such as being able to talk to a line manager about stress and having sympathetic and helpful colleagues. The BJSQ has been developed and validated in Japan, where there is research and government interest in workplace stress (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, 2023) due to a perceived culture of high workplace pressures across job sectors (Frantz & Holmgren, 2019; Hirokawa et al., 2020). It has consistently demonstrated construct, content, and criterion validity (Tsutsumi, Inoue & Eguchi, 2017). For the current study EP sample, the whole scale Cronbach Alpha was 0.859; subscale scores were WS = 0.263, SR = 0.891, and SF = 0.846.

Alpha scores for the whole scale and subscales SR and SF demonstrate construct validity for EP professionals. The WS subscale did not meet the criterion (A CA score of 0.7 and above) for being considered to have construct validity for this sample. More recent research on the measure has critiqued the WS subscale as too broad and re-constructed it into a more specific set of subscales (Watanabe et al., 2023). Each subscale consists of three items. These are distinguished as quantitative job overload (QuJO) (such as too many work tasks and not enough time to complete them), qualitative job overload (QlJO) (such as work tasks requiring high skill and cognitive effort), and job control (JC) (such as being able to choose when and how work tasks are completed) (Watanabe et al., 2023). For the current sample, Cronbach Alpha scores were QuJO = 0.750, QlJO = 0.533, and JC = 0.682. For less than ten items, a Cronbach score of 4 or more is advisable (Bonnett & Wright, 2015). The decision was made to break WA into three further subscales for the current sample.

Educational Psychologists’ Work-based Motivations Questionnaire (EPWM)

The EPWM was developed for the current study as there was no existing measure for capturing EPs’ general work contexts and practices and their motivations for changing work contexts and practices. The development and validation of the measure were reported first in a preceding journal article (Sewell et al., UNDER REVIEW). The EPWM consists of Part A and Part B. Part A collects contextual data about EP working life. This includes primary work context (e.g., Local Authority, independent EP, NHS, etc.), contracted work hours per week, estimated actual hours worked per week (on average), estimated average number of cases per academic year, estimated average number of reports per academic year (not including those for EHCPs), the estimated average number of assessments for EHCPs per academic year, estimated (in hours) average length of a school visit, estimated (in hours) average length of a home visit. The averages for these items in the current sample have been previously reported (Sewell et al., UNDER REVIEW), with reliable construct validity being found.

Part B uses Likert-style responses across 25 items. These range from Strongly disagree (1) to Strongly agree (5). Items are structured around respondents' thoughts, steps taken, and actual plans regarding changing job/careers, pursuing a complementary career (e.g., teaching psychology), taking a career break, taking a secondment, continuing to work as an EP, and changing contracted hours, continuing to work as an EP and changing context (e.g., from LA to independent practice). Part B consists of three subscales relevant to the current study. Motivations to change job/career (MoJ), motivations to pursue alternative options such as a secondment (MoA), and motivations to Continue working as an EP but change context or practices (MoC). Whole scale and subscale construct validity were previously reported (Sewell et al. UNDER REVIEW).

Data analysis

Data were coded and then analysed using Used IBM SPSS statistics V29. Firstly, descriptive statistics were calculated for each sub-scale for the whole sample. Secondly, multiple regression was used to assess whether CS, CF, BO, QuJo, QlJO, JC, SR, and SF predicted MoJ, MoA, and MoC.

Population characteristics

92.5% of participants reported their gender as Female, and 7% reported their gender as Male. The mean participant age was 43, with a standard deviation of 11. 6.5% of the sample considered themselves disabled. Unequal geographic distribution centered on England (89.1%), followed by Scotland (5%), Wales (4%), and outside of the UK (0.5%).

The primary reported ethnicity was ‘White: English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish, or British’ (80.6%), with the following ethnicities also represented in the sample:

‘White: Any other White background’ (9%)
‘White: Irish’ (2%)
‘Mixed or multiple ethnic groups: White and Asian’ (1.5%)
‘Mixed or multiple ethnic groups: White and Black Caribbean (1%)
‘Asian/ Asian British: Indian’ (1%)
‘Asian/ Asian British: Pakistani’ (1%)
‘Asian/ Asian British: Chinese’ (0.5%)
‘White: Gypsy or Irish traveler’ (0.5%)
‘White: Roma’ (0.5%)

Descriptive statistics: ProQol, BJSQ, and EPWM scores

Table One presents the descriptive statistics for the whole sample across all included sub-scales. On the ProQol scale, mean scores show a high level of CS (above 33) and high levels of BO (above 22), and moderate levels of CF or ‘at risk of’ CF (above 17) in the sample. This indicates that, on average, participants were likely to report that they were experiencing work-related burnout and somewhat likely to report that they were experiencing compassion fatigue. They were very likely to report experiencing high levels of compassion satisfaction.

On the BJSQ scale, mean scores show low levels of QuJO and QlJO and moderate to high levels of JC. This indicates that, on average, participants were likely to report not experiencing work-based stress due to quantitative and qualitative pressures. They were also more likely to report workplace stress from feeling a lack of control. Mean scores also showed moderate to high levels for SR and SF. This can be interpreted as participants were likelier to report stress symptoms (general) than not and were likely to report experiencing social support in the workplace context.

On the EPWM scale, mean scores show moderate to high levels of MoJ and MoA and medium to low levels of MoC. This indicates that, on average, participants were likely to report motivations towards changing job/careers and pursuing alternative options and less likely to report motivations to continue working as an EP and change work contexts/practices.

Table One: Sample descriptive statistics

	CS	BO	CF	QuJO	QlJO	JC	SR	SF	MoJ	MoA	MoC
Mean	36.6	26.6	20.9	4.8	3.7	6.9	59.4	21.9	22.6	24.4	24.3
St.Dv	6.9	6.0	5.9	1.9	1.0	2.1	11.7	5.8	5.8	4.7	8.1
Max	49	41	42	12	12	12	96	37	30	30	45

Multiple regression

The three multiple linear regressions were computed with MoJ, MoA, and MoC as the dependent variable in turn and CS, BO, CF, QuJO, QlJo, JC, SR, and SF as independent variables. Table Two presents the model for MoJ. The R Square value for the MoJ model was R2 = 0.393, demonstrating that the independent variables can explain 39.3% of the variation in MoJ scores. This value meant that the model was significant at the .001 level. BO was the only variable that significantly predicted MoJ at the 0.05 level. Table Three presents the model for MoA. The R Square value for the MoA model was R2 = .466, demonstrating that the independent variables can explain 46.6% of the variation in MoA scores. This value meant that the model was significant at the .001 level. BO was the only variable that significantly predicted MOA at the 0.05 level. Table Four presents the model for MoC. The R square value for the MoC model was R2 = 0.563, demonstrating that the independent variables can explain 56.3% of the variance in MoC scores. This value meant that the model was significant at the .001 level. BO was the only variable that significantly predicted MoC at the 0.05 level. In summary, all multiple regression models for, MoJ, MoA, and MoC were significant. BO predicted all dependent variables. There were no other significant predictive variables across CS, CF, QuJO, QlJO, JC, SR, and SF.

Tabel Two: Multiple linear regression for MoJ

IV	B	Coefficients Std. Error	B (Standarised)	t	p
QuJO	.071	.222	.024	.320	.750
QlJO	-.191	.364	-.035	-.526	.599
JC	-.101	.194	-.037	-.519	.604
SR	.020	.045	.041	.451	.653
SF	-.057	.076	-.057	-.742	.459
CS	-.099	.076	-.118	-1.303	.194
BO	-.603	.126	-.632	-4.785	<.001
CF	-.073	.071	-.075	-1.036	.301

Table Three: Multiple linear regression for MoA

IV	B	Coefficients Std. Error	B (Standarised)	t	p
QuJO	.045	.207	.019	.218	.828
QlJO	.250	.340	.056	.735	.463
JC	-.311	.181	.140	-1.719	.087
SR	-.015	.042	-.038	-.368	.713
SF	-.008	.071	-.010	-.114	.909
CS	-.110	.071	-.160	-1.553	.122
BO	-.247	.118	-.315	-2.098	.037
CF	-.100	.066	-.125	-1.523	.129

Table Four: Multiple linear regression for MoC

IV	B	Coefficients Std. Error	B (Standarised)	t	p
QuJO	.399	.311	.097	1.205	.230
QlJO	.416	.543	.054	.767	.444
JC	-.346	.289	-.091	-1.198	.233
SR	-.062	.067	-.089	-.926	.356
SF	-.046	.114	-.033	-.406	.685
CS	-.019	.113	-.016	-.167	.868
BO	-.423	.188	-.315	-2.246	.026
CF	-.082	.105	-.059	-.777	.438

The current study sought to establish the prevalence of SS, BO, CF, and CS in a sample of practicing EPs and to see if these variables predicted EPs’ motivations to seek a change of job or career, explore alternative options (such as a secondment), or remain working as an EP but make changes to context (e.g., moving from LA to independent employment) and/or patterns (e.g., reducing work hours). EPs who took part in the study were more likely to be experiencing CS along with BO but less likely to be experiencing CF. There were minimal reports of SS arising from quantitative experiences like workload or qualitative experiences, such as work tasks requiring too much cognitive activity. A high level of SS was reported to arise from a lack of control and limited autonomy. On average, the sample reported that they were experiencing motivations to pursue a different job/career, to explore alternative options, or, to a lesser extent, to stay working as an EP but explore different working options. BO was the only variable to show significant predictive power and did so for all dependent variables of seeking a change of job/career, exploring alternative options, or remaining working as an EP and changing context/patterns.

There needs to be more research to compare the findings of SS and BO levels. However, the finding that SS mainly arises from a feeling of lack of control and autonomy and not from workload pressures differs from DfE (2023), Gersch & Teuma (2005) and Islam (2013), where workload and managing competing demands were qualitatively reported as primary causes of SS. It is helpful to establish BO as a concern for practicing EPs as this mirrors the prevalence of BO in the related educational profession of teaching (García-Carmona et al., 2019; Madigan & Kim, 2021). The finding that BO predicts motivations to change some aspect of a career as an EP (from a scale of finding a new career to changing work context or patterns) aligns with the finding that BO predicts teachers' intentions to leave the profession (Madigan & Kim, 2021). It also mirrors the findings of Atfield et al. (2023) where EP intentions to leave or change a part of practice were reported as relating to perceived work pressures (Atfield et al., 2023, pg. 42–43). The influence of BO on motivation to seek changes to working life can potentially be explained by the broader occupational psychology literature, which has established that a primary predictor for BO is chronic SS associated with feeling a lack of control (Aydemir & Icelli, 2012; Lindblom, Linton, Fedeli & Bryngelsson, 2006). This has implications for considering proactive and preventative approaches to BO prevention in the EP workforce, including how feelings of autonomy and control can be fostered.

While reports of CF were present, the mean level indicates more of a sample-wide risk for CF than a high likelihood of it being a common experience. This, coupled with the reports of a high level of CS, is positive and promising as these CS/CF levels did not mirror the low/high prevalence of each typically found in other caring professions (Forsyth et al., 2022; Sinclair et al., 2017; Sorenson et al., 2016). CS predicts job satisfaction which can act as a protective factor for SS and BO (Sprang, Clark & Whitt-Woosley, 2007; Onyett, 2011), which could be harnessed to develop effective BO mitigation interventions for EPs. BO interventions are delivered at the individual level, organisational level, or a combination of the two. There is a lack of consensus as to whether combination interventions are the most efficacious BO reduction in the long term (West, Dyrbye, Erwin & Shanafelt, 2016), or if both individual and organisational are equally effective (Awa, Plaumann & Walter, 2010). Future research could explore the development and evaluation of CS-based BO interventions at both the individual and organisational levels.

Of course, there are limitations to the study, which should be appreciated when reviewing the implications of the findings. Notably, the limitations of self-report data should be acknowledged. Social desirability bias, subject bias, and self-selection bias all lead to the rational assumption that there may be differences between EPs who chose to participate in the research and those who did not. The findings regarding BO could result from participants self-selecting to take part because they have experienced this at work and wish to share their perspective, or they have consciously or unconsciously conformed to the topic of the study, or are seeking to give answers they feel would be socially desirable. It is arguably not socially desirable to have BO/SS but participants may have felt it desirable given the topic of the research. In addition, measures ProQoL and BJSQ, although recommended for assessing CS/CL/BO and SS, have yet to be more widely validated in psychologist populations. However, the construct validity of each measure for the current sample was established. In summary, the findings, as with all cross-sectional descriptive design studies, should be interpreted cautiously. Despite apparent limitations, the study is a critical step in identifying BO, SS, CF, and CS in EPs and highlights a need for further research on this topic.

A critical first step for future research is repeating the current study, preferably with a larger sample, to assess the test-re-test validity of the current findings. There are also other populations for which it would be beneficial to explore the experiences of BO, SS, CF, and CS. For example, Trainee Educational Psychologists (TEP) have a unique workload and pressures that warrant exploration. Researchers may also wish to follow the progress of the BO research literature for teaching, where the recent focus has been exploring the potential effects of professional BO on pupils (Madigan and Kim, 2021b). A qualitative research approach is also advisable for exploring the phenomena from a different perspective, gleaning deeper understanding from engagement with ‘thick description’ (Geertz, 2008). An interpretivist approach would also lend itself to exploring vulnerable subgroups’ experience of the variables, such as those with a disability or caring duties. This is an important consideration for future research as the occupational psychology literature has demonstrated that these populations are often more vulnerable to experiencing BO, SS, and CF (Chandola, 2010; Colligan & Higgins, 2008; Davies, 2022; García-Carmona et al., 2019).

If more extensive research literature on working-life experiences is established for EPs, it can inform the development and evaluation of BO, SS, and CF interventions, as previously discussed. This is an advisable goal for the profession as such interventions have the potential to positively impact working-life experiences, quality of service delivery, and EP recruitment and retention. What is apparent is that EPs are passionate about their profession and gain much satisfaction from forging a career in a compassionate discipline. While this may go some way to mediate against workplace demands, the findings of the current study call for a noble shift towards ‘caring for the carers.’ As the famous idiom states, ‘You can’t pour from an empty cup.’ It is hoped that the current research will lead to expansion on this topic. It is time to refill the EP cup.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST STATEMENT

On behalf of all authors, the corresponding author states that there is no conflict of interest.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST AND COMPLIANC WITH ETHICS STATEMENT

On behalf of all authors, the corresponding author states that there is no conflict of interest. The University of Worcester Ethics Board granted ethical clearance to complete the research and informed consent was obtained from participants.

DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT

Data cannot be made openly available to protect study participant privacy.

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No competing interests reported.

Caring for the carers: The influence of stress, burnout, and experiences of compassion on educational psychologists’ work-based motivations.

Status:

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Abstract

Introduction