Research reveals healthcare professionals are much less likely to suffer burnout when they have a “calling”

Abstract

PurposeThe authors wanted to study the importance of a calling for decreasing stress. They chose to study workers in the healthcare profession where callings are common, but previous research has not looked at the mechanisms linking calling and burnout.Design/methodology/approachData were collected from Lithuanian healthcare professionals using both paper and online surveys. After removing incomplete responses, there were 566 cases of nurses and physicians. Of the total sample, 85pc were women. Just over half were nurses and these were overwhelmingly female (98.9pc). But 47pc of the sample were physicians and 64pc of them were female. The average age was 43.77.FindingsThe data showed how healthcare professionals were much less likely to suffer from burnout when they had a “calling” for their work. The crucial mediating factor was social worth. The research also revealed that the link between calling and social worth was more pronounced for late-career employees. However, the impact of social worth on burnout was stronger for early-career employees.Originality/valueThere were a number of practical implications for organizations. Firstly, the data supports the advantageous effects of calling to reduce healthcare professionals’ burnout. This means that maintaining a calling, such as through job crafting, will help to reduce stress. A second implication is the role of social worth in triggering the effects of calling. Therefore, organizations and administrators should focus on positive feedback that promotes feelings of social value.