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Abstract
This study aimed to conduct, for the first time, a systematic review and meta-analysis of the level of burnout among social workers in the social services sector and to identify factors associated with burnout among them. Using PRISMA guidelines, searches were carried out from January 1, 1990 through January 10, 2024. Exclusively primary studies implementing the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) questionnaire for diagnosing burnout were included in the review. In total, data were extracted from 24 studies, including 16,962 social services workers from seven countries. The random-effects pooled prevalence estimate of burnout was 20% (95% confidence interval [CI] 13–27%). Pooled Emotional Exhaustion (EE), Depersonalization (DP), and lack of Personal Accomplishment (PA) were 50% (95% CI 38–62%), 45% (95% CI 34–64%), and 39% (95% CI 26–52%), respectively. Several variables emerged as significantly associated with higher prevalence of burnout, including older age, lower response rate, and studies conducted outside Europe. Overall, the current review demonstrated that approximately half of the social workers in the social services sector experienced burnout. A uniform diagnostic tool for the assessment of burnout is warranted, and further studies on burnout in lower- and middle-income countries are suggested.
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No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
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Notes on contributors
Víctor M. Giménez-Bertomeu
Víctor M. Giménez-Bertomeu, PhD, is a Social Worker, and Sociologist. He is Associate Professor in the Department of Social Work and Social Services at the University of Alicante (Spain). Prior to working in social work education, he served as social worker and team manager in the social services of the city of Alicante (Spain). His main research interests include social work practice and organizational contexts, users’ participation at macro and micro levels, development and validation of standardized instruments for social work assessment, teaching practice in social work, and social work research.
Francisco Caravaca-Sánchez
Francisco Caravaca-Sánchez is an Associate Professor in the Department of Social Work and Social Services at the University of Alicante (Spain). He earned a PhD from University of Murcia in Forensic Sciences and a second PhD from the Pablo de Olavide University in Social Work. His research interests include prediction of violence in individuals with mental illness and substance use in the criminal justice system and general population.
Nicolás de Alfonseti-Hartmann
Nicolás de Alfonseti-Hartmann is a Social Worker and Bachelor in French Studies. He is Associate Professor in the Department of Social Work and Social Services at the University of Alicante (Spain). He served as social worker and team manager in the social services of the city of Villajoyosa (Spain) and Adjunct Professor of Social Work at the University of Alicante (Spain). His main research interests include social services organization and development, comparative analysis of social services, and social work practice in public and private not-for-profit social services.
Adrián Jesús Ricoy-Cano
Adrián Jesús Ricoy-Cano, PhD, is a Social Worker and Margarita Salas postdoctoral contract lecturer, University of Jaén and University of Cádiz (Next Generation EU|Recovery Funds for Europe). His research explores social factors that condition sexuality in older women and the influence of rurality on abuse against older women.