Burnout in Anglophone and Francophone Child and Youth Workers in Canada: A Cross-Cultural Comparison

Abstract

This article presents Canadian-specific findings from a study that compared child and youth care workers in thirteen cultures on four research scales (Savicki, 2002). The purpose of the overall study was to identify the ways in which individuals from different cultures responded to working with youth, and ways in which they coped with the threat of burnout. As part of a larger study (Savicki, 2002), data was collected among 68 Francophone and 48 Anglophone Canadian youth workers from a variety of settings. While there were no differences in burnout between the Francophone and Anglophone cultures, large differences appeared in cultural dimensions, in the manner of child and youth care practice, and in the contributors to burnout in each culture. With three out of four cultural dimensions significantly different, dramatic differences in culture exist side-by-side in Quebec.