Latent profiles and transition of job burnout and their relationship with dispositional mindfulness and reappraisal among firefighters in China

Abstract

The present study examined what, if any, patterns and changes in these patterns over time of job burnout among firefighters and their relationships with internal protective factors (i.e., dispositional mindfulness and reappraisal). A two-wave investigation (three-month interval; T1 and T2) was conducted with a sample of 334 Chinese firefighters. Latent profile analyses and latent transition analyses were applied to identify subgroups of job burnout and transitions of these patterns over time. Two latent profiles were identified based on job burnout characterized by emotional exhaustion, cynicism, and reduced personal accomplishment at T1 and T2, including a “low job burnout” group (LJB, 72.16 % and 61.38 %) and a “high job burnout” group (HJB, 27.84 % and 38.62 %). 24.25 % firefighters remained in the HJB, and 56.89 % remained in the LJB. 6.59 % firefighters in the HJB at T1 moved to the LJB at T2, and 12.28 % did the opposite. Firefighters were more likely to be classified in the LJB and to move from the HJB to the LJB with the improvement of dispositional mindfulness and reappraisal levels. These findings reveal the heterogeneity in job burnout among firefighters, and indicate that implementing mindfulness-based and emotional regulation training may prevent them from risk of job burnout.