Why a burned-out employee may be more costly than you think

Largely due to the current economic conditions and increased competitive pressures, the nature of the work environment is rapidly changing. Although some developments, such as information/telecommunication technologies, have helped to ease these pressures, they nonetheless have the consequence of increased pressure on individual workers. This pressure may result in burnout—a syndrome of emotional exhaustion, depersonalization (detachment), and reduced personal accomplishment.

While current research has shown evidence that those burned out are more likely to have lower performance and even leave their jobs, recent research suggests that these workers may also be more likely to engage in workplace deviance. As explained by researcher and CMA consultant, LaMarcus Bolton:

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What we found is that burned-out employees are likely to engage in workplace deviance—most likely in efforts to physically withdraw from the demanding situation responsible for their burnout.

When we explored this further, we discovered that these employees are able to justify harming their organization by first cognitively distancing themselves from the employer.

One interesting thing we learned was that this effect was totally nullified for those employees with higher self-control. Meaning, if you have high self-control, you likely won’t lash out against your organization, despite how burned out you are.

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If you are suffering from burnout, there are several ways to proactively cope, including:

• Directly address problems: Proactively use whatever resources you have to address the source of the burnout directly.
• Ask for new duties: If is possible that the nature of your job is responsible for the burnout. In this case, ask for a reassignment.
• Take time off: The simplest way of immediately addressing burnout is to take some time off. This will allow you to recharge your batteries.

Finally, of course, if you are an employer, you can assess for individual difference factors that may make someone susceptible to burnout and/or workplace deviance.

To read the full article, please visit Stress and Health.