Indicators, Causes and Strategies of Curbing Burnouts among Lecturers of Some Universities in Cameroon

In most university settings, lecturers have diverse activities which require an enabling environment for optimum and sustainable performance. The absence of this working climate could lead to an emotional outburst known as burnout, a critical health concern that manifests in different ways. Burnout as a psychological impediment is most often overlooked when discussing the range of factors that usually affect the quality of lecturers' professional output. This is because most academics hardly notice they are emotionally unhealthy until this burnout starts manifesting in other aspects of their lives like physical health, social interactions, work and family. It is on this premise that this paper focuses on the indicators, causes of and strategies that can be put in place to curb burnout among university lecturers. The research design used in this study was a cross-sectional survey where an online questionnaire was used to collect both quantitative and qualitative data from 89 lecturers (47.1% Males, 52.9 Females), age range 30-65 years, of the Universities of Bamenda, Buea and Dschang. Quantitative data obtained from the questionnaire was coded and entered into the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 26.0 while qualitative data was analysed using thematic analysis. The findings revealed that some of the indicators of burnout often exhibited by lecturers are feeling emotionally and physically drained, irritation at minor issues, feeling misunderstood by colleagues and administrators, being frustrated with part of the job and unpleasant level of pressure. The majority of respondents reported that burnout is often caused by constant criticism, overwork, inadequate compensation and poor working social climate. To reduce this emotional/mental challenge, the respondents suggested that there is a need to set up stress management, self -care and work-life balance programmes, and to promote a positive social climate and adequate motivation at the workplace.