Burnout Among Psychologists: Direct Effects of Work Engagement and the Absence of Mediation by Areas of Worklife

The main aim of this study was to investigate the association between areas of worklife and work engagement in the development of burnout syndrome among self-employed and institutionally employed psychologists. Using a cross-sectional quantitative design, three scales validated for the Brazilian population were applied: the Burnout Assessment Tool (BAT), the Areas of Worklife Survey (AWS), and the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES). A total of 180 psychology professionals participated, with a predominance of women participants (88.3%); the majority were aged between 24 and 29 years. The hypothesized relationships among variables were tested using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The results revealed a strong negative correlation between BAT domains and dimensions assessed by the UWES, confirming the inverse association between engagement and burnout. A positive association between areas of worklife and engagement was also confirmed. However, no negative association between areas of worklife and burnout was found, and no evidence supported a mediating role of these areas in the relationship between engagement and burnout. Although areas of worklife independently influenced both engagement and burnout, their mediating role in this relationship was not supported by the data. These findings point to the complexity of the interactions among these variables and indicate relevant directions for future research.