Personal Discomfort Research Articles

Pedagogy of the great pandemic of the 21st century: Epistemic implications for individual psychology, family science, and psychotherapies

AbstractAs an effect of the severe health crisis caused by COVID‐19, lockdown constituted a psychosocial laboratory that represented an experiment on a global scale. The lessons from the research findings in the pandemic environment have been of enormous importance to the disciplines of human behavior. This paper explores two themes evidenced in this context: people's psychological well‐being is underpinned by a socio‐emotional network, and the most frequent psychological symptoms experienced in the pandemic are a socio‐political problem; in particular it was observed that women reported greater discomfort than men in that period, showing with it that gender inequality remains a structural malaise. The conclusion points to two issues. First, an individualistic psychology is impossible without social content, especially in the collective affectivity, where the person participates. Second, psychotherapists should contemplate, in diagnosis and intervention, the socio‐emotional and political context in which the symptomatology appears. The focus of this article is based on systemic third‐order thinking, from where the socio‐economic and cultural structural order is closely linked to identity, well‐being, or personal discomfort.

Prevalence of Hemorrhoids and Their Risk Factors Among the Adult Population in Jazan, Saudi Arabia.

Hemorrhoids are defined as the symptomatic enlargement and distal displacement of the normal anal cushions. They can be either internal, external, or internoexternal, according to their position in relation to the dentate line. They can cause significant financial burdens and personal discomfort. However, the typical symptoms of hemorrhoids include bleeding, pain, skin irritation, fecal leakage, prolapse, mucus secretion, and developing a thrombosed hernia. Nonetheless, research has shown that individuals with and without hemorrhoids equally report these symptoms. This study aims to investigate the prevalence of hemorrhoids and their risk factors among adult subjects in Jazan, Saudi Arabia. This investigation was a cross-sectional study targeting adults diagnosed with hemorrhoids in the Jazan region. Data collection was performed via a self-administered questionnaire to measure sociodemographic data of the participants, lifestyle factors associated with hemorrhoids, clinical presentations of the disease, and Rome IV criteria for diagnosis of functional constipation. The chi-squared test was used to assess the frequency of hemorrhoid symptoms according to the participants' sociodemographic and lifestyle characteristics. In the current study, which recruited 361 participants, 59% (216 individuals) reported experiencing at least one symptom of hemorrhoids. The majority of the sample were females (60%), Saudis (96%), and living in urban areas (59%)and had a university education (77.3%). The most common risk factors identified were lack of regular physical activity (83%), prolonged sitting during office work (51%), and consuming food with saturated fat (50%). A total of 44% (159 participants) had a family history of hemorrhoids, and 40% reported suffering from constipation three times or more per week. Only 34% (123 participants) had been diagnosed with hemorrhoids by a physician. Interestingly, the majority of participants (57%) preferred using home remedies instead of seeking medical care from a healthcare professional. When assessing factors associated with experiencing a minimum of six hemorrhoid symptoms per month, age, lifestyle factors, family history of hemorrhoids, and defecation practices were found to be significantly correlated with a higher occurrence of symptoms (with a p-value of less than 0.05). The current study identified a high prevalence of hemorrhoid symptoms and their risk factors among the adult population in the Jazan region of Saudi Arabia. The findings suggest a need to increase the awareness of the public about hemorrhoids risk factors and the importance of seeking healthcare at an early stage of the disease.

Evaluation of an online advanced suicide prevention training for pharmacists.

With the pharmacist role extending internationally to include health promotion and harm reduction, pharmacists are well-suited to adopt a frontline role within suicide prevention efforts. To maximise their abilities to implement suicide prevention strategies, suicide prevention training is essential to improve pharmacists' knowledge of, attitudes towards, and confidence in pharmacy-based suicide prevention. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of an online Advanced Suicide Prevention Training for Pharmacists and explore how participant feedback may direct training improvements. One hundred and fiftypharmacists in Tasmania, Australia, completed the training. Of these, 109 participants completed surveys pre-, post- and 6-months post-training to evaluate changes in suicide prevention knowledge, confidence, and attitudes, and explore participants' perceptions of the training. Significant improvements were observed in suicide prevention attitudes (F(2, 20) = 4.12, p = 0.032, partial η2 = 0.292), and self-efficacy (F(2, 20) = 7.84, p = 0.003, partial η2 = 0.439), across the three timepoints, with improvements to knowledge and confidence evident between pre- and post-training (p < 0.05). Qualitative data reflected that the training was beneficial in aiding the identification and support of at-risk individuals, however barriers such as the pharmacy setting, personal discomfort, and perceptions of the pharmacist role were identified as impeding the implementation of suicide prevention within pharmacy practice. Training is an effective means of improving pharmacists' suicide prevention knowledge, confidence, and attitudes. While personal barriers to suicide prevention improved, contextual and social barriers continue to impede pharmacists' implementation of suicide prevention in practice.

The Use of Voice Assistant for Psychological Assessment Elicits Empathy and Engagement While Maintaining Good Psychometric Properties.

This study aimed to use the Alexa vocal assistant as an administerer of psychometric tests, assessing the efficiency and validity of this measurement. A total of 300 participants were administered the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI). After a week, the administration was repeated, but the participants were randomly divided into groups of 100 participants each. In the first, the test was administered by means of a paper version; in the second, the questionnaire was read to the participants in person, and the operator contemporaneously recorded the answers declared by the participants; in the third group, the questionnaire was directly administered by the Alexa voice device, after specific reprogramming. The third group was also administered, as a post-session survey, the Engagement and Perceptions of the Bot Scale (EPVS), a short version of the Communication Styles Inventory (CSI), the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale (MCSDS), and an additional six items to measure degrees of concentration, ease, and perceived pressure at the beginning and at the end of the administration. The results confirmed that the IRI did keep measurement invariance within the three conditions. The administration through vocal assistant showed an empathic activation effect significantly superior to the conditions of pencil-paper and operator-in-presence. The results indicated an engagement and positive evaluation of the interactive experience, with reported perceptions of closeness, warmth, competence, and human-likeness associated with higher values of empathetic activation and lower values of personal discomfort.

Firefighters under alert: psychological morbidity, empathy and alexithymia between firefighters and non-firefighters

Firefighters have high exposure to traumatic events and have an increased risk of developing symptoms related to trauma. The current study assessed the psychological morbidity, empathy and alexithymia of volunteer firefighters compared to career firefighters and to non-firefighter comparators from the general population. Group differences were assessed using multivariate comparisons and univariate tests and discriminant analysis for individual measures. A total of 1062 individuals completed the protocol. Considering firefighters as the focus of analysis, data suggested that both career and volunteer firefighters presented higher trauma than the comparison group. In subscales of empathy, compared to the comparison group, career firefighters scored higher on the perspective-taking scale, while firefighters showed less personal discomfort and less fantasy. Firefighters showed less alexithymia, in the outward-oriented style of thinking than the comparison group. The findings suggest the need for more prevention and treatment efforts for firefighters, with the introduction of educational and therapeutic interventions.

Launching continuous kangaroo mother care through participatory action research in Iran

BackgroundThis study describes the launching of a unit for continuous kangaroo mother care (KMC) in a teaching hospital (Taleghani) in Iran.MethodsWe used a participatory three-stage action research approach to establish a unit for continuous KMC: design (needs identification and planning for change); implementation (and reflection); and evaluation (and institutionalization). As part of the design and implementation stages, individual and focus group interviews were conducted with mothers, physicians, nurses, other healthcare personnel and policy makers. The evaluation was done by means of a standardized tool specifically developed for monitoring progress with the implementation of KMC.ResultsFour themes relating to potential barriers to implementation emerged from the analysis of the staff interviews, namely barriers associated with the mother, the father, the physician and the health system. Mothers’ experiences of barriers were grouped into five themes: personal discomfort, fear, healthcare provider attitudes and actions, infrastructure constraints and family matters. An implementation progress score of 27.05 out of 30 was achieved, indicating that the continuous KMC unit was on the path to institutionalization. Some of the gaps identified related to policies on resource allocation, the discharge and follow-up system, and the transportation of infants in the KMC position.ConclusionThe study findings indicated that participatory action research is a suitable method for studying the establishment of a continuous KMC unit. When action research is practiced, there is a prospect of turning knowledge into action in the real world.

Ideologically‐based contact avoidance during a pandemic: Blunt or selective distancing from ‘others’?

AbstractThis project sought to understand when ideology is relevant (or not) to predicting contact avoidance of ‘others’ during the COVID‐19 pandemic. Right‐leaning ideologies (political conservatism, right‐wing authoritarianism, social dominance orientation) were not expected to predict greater contact avoidance per se, but rather exhibit selective avoidance of outgroup (vs. ingroup) members. White British participated in one exploratory (Study 1 N = 364) and two pre‐registered (Study 2 N = 431, Study 3 N = 700) studies. As expected, right‐leaning ideologies were significantly stronger predictors of greater preferred personal distance and contact discomfort regarding foreign outgroups (vs. British ingroup) in Studies 1 and 3 (partially supported in Study 2). Ideology rarely predicted ingroup reactions. This Ideology × Target pattern was itself not moderated by the perceived COVID‐19 threat. Pre‐pandemic theorizing that heightened behavioural immune system responses are associated with heightened right‐leaning ideologies appear insufficient for use in actual pandemic contexts, especially when highly politicized.

THE PHENOMENON OF PROFESSIONAL DEFORMATION AS AN ASPECT OF TEACHERS’ EMOTIONAL BURNOUT

The article is devoted to the emotional burnout of the personality, which manifests itselfincreasing emotional exhaustion, leading both to personal discomfort among specialists, and toa serious decrease in work efficiency.

A qualitative study of healthcare providers’ attitudes toward assisted partner notification for people with HIV in Indonesia

BackgroundAssisted partner notification (APN) is recommended as a public health strategy to increase HIV testing in people exposed to HIV. Yet its adoption in many countries remains at an early stage. This qualitative study sought the opinions of HIV health service providers regarding the appropriateness and feasibility of implementing APN in Indonesia where such services are on the cusp of adoption.MethodsFour focus group discussions totaling 40 health service providers were held in Jakarta, Indonesia to consider APN as an innovative concept and to share their reactions regarding its potential implementation in Indonesia. Voice-recorded discussions were conducted in Bahasa, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed.ResultsParticipants recognized APN’s potential in contacting and informing the partners of HIV-positive clients of possible viral exposure. They also perceived APN’s value as a client-driven service permitting clients to select which of three partner notification methods would work best for them across differing partner relationships and settings. Nonetheless, participants also identified personal and health system challenges that could impede successful APN adoption including medical and human resource limitations, the need for specialized APN training, ethical and equity considerations, and lack of sufficient clarity concerning laws and government policies regulating 3rd party disclosures. They also pointed to the job-overload, stress, personal discomfort, and the ethical uncertainty that providers might experience in delivering APN.ConclusionOverall, providers of HIV services embraced the concept of APN but forecast practical difficulties in key service areas where investments in resources and system change appeared necessary to ensure effective and equitable implementation.

"I am feeling tension in my whole body": An experimental phenomenological study of empathy for pain.

Traditionally, empathy has been studied from two main perspectives: the theory-theory approach and the simulation theory approach. These theories claim that social emotions are fundamentally constituted by mind states in the brain. In contrast, classical phenomenology and recent research based on the enactive theories consider empathy as the basic process of contacting others' emotional experiences through direct bodily perception and sensation. This study aims to enrich the knowledge of the empathic experience of pain using an experimental phenomenological method. Implementing an experimental paradigm used in affective neuroscience, we exposed 28 healthy adults to a video of sportspersons suffering physical accidents while practicing extreme sports. Immediately after watching the video, each participant underwent a phenomenological interview to gather data on embodied, multi-layered dimensions (bodily sensations, emotions, and motivations) and temporal aspects of empathic experience. We also performed quantitative analyses of the phenomenological categories. Experiential access to the other person's painful experience involves four main themes. Bodily resonance: participants felt a multiplicity of bodily, affective, and kinesthetic sensations in coordination with the sportsperson's bodily actions. Attentional focus: some participants centered their attention more on their own personal discomfort and sensations of rejection, while others on the pain and suffering experienced by the sportspersons. Kinesthetic motivation: some participants experienced the feeling in their bodies to avoid or escape from watching the video, while others experienced the need to help the sportspersons avoid suffering any injury while practicing extreme sports. The temporality of experience: participants witnessed temporal fluctuations in their experiences, bringing intensity changes in their bodily resonance, attentional focus, and kinesthetic motivation. Finally, two experiential structures were found: one structure is self-centered empathic experience, characterized by bodily resonance, attentional focus centered on the participant's own experience of seeing the sportsperson suffering, and self-protective kinesthetic motivation; the other structure is other-centered empathic experience, characterized by bodily resonance, attentional focus centered on the sportsperson, and prosocial kinesthetic motivation to help them. We show how phenomenological data may contribute to comprehending empathy for pain in social neuroscience. In addition, we address the phenomenological aspect of the enactive approach to the three dimensions of an embodiment of human consciousness, especially the intersubjective dimension. Also, based on our results, we suggest an extension of the enactive theory of non-interactive social experience.

Utilisation of in-consultation supervisor assistance in general practice training and personal cost to trainees: a cross-sectional study.

Aim The aim of the study was to establish whether two previously described barriers to effective in-consultation assistance-seeking by general practice (GP) vocational specialist trainees (ie concern about patient impressions of their competence, and discomfort presenting to supervisors in front of patients) influenced the frequency of trainee in-consultation assistance-seeking from their supervisor. Methods This was a cross-sectional study nested in the Registrar Clinical Encounters in Clinical Training ongoing cohort study of Australian GP trainees. Trainee participants completed contemporaneous records of 60 consecutive patient consultations, including whether supervisory assistance was sought. Trainees also completed a cross-sectional survey including items eliciting their beliefs about patient impressions and their own discomfort in seeking in-consultation supervisory assistance. These were factors of interest in multivariable logistic regression analyses; the outcome factor in both regression models was the seeking of in-consultation supervisory assistance. Results In 2018, 778 trainees (778/876, response rate 89%) completed the cross-sectional survey. No association was found between the odds of in-consultation help-seeking and perceived decrease in patient impressions of trainee competence (OR = 1.09; 95% CI: 0.91, 1.31; P = 0.36) or higher comfort presenting outside patients' hearing (OR = 0.9; 95% CI: 0.77, 1.05; P = 0.19). Discussion Contrary to expected utility models of help-seeking, trainees may not consider personal discomfort or impression management to be important enough, compared to patient safety and other considerations, to influence decisions regarding in-consultation help-seeking. Clinical supervisors should, nevertheless, consider the potential personal costs to trainees and maintain trainee self-esteem and confidence by providing in-consultation assistance in front of patients as comfortably and effectively as possible.

Patrick

Patrick had to go. I decreed it. I had allowed him to move into my garage one winter but then I evicted him. Not immediately, but after his tobacco and other noxious habits had begun to unsettle my equilibrium. Also, it was becoming unsanitary for reasons I’m sure I need not explain. I granted him refuge and then I ejected him. I sent him back to the streets, towards a world of bandits with no suburban carport for safe harbour. However, when I stood outside my house, arms akimbo for courage, I said nothing of my personal discomfort. In truth I said that I was worried about the way he struck matches and smoked while lying beneath my car. I recall no resistance, only mute acceptance. He left a bag of things – aging plastic packets, a woman’s wide-brimmed straw hat now lopsided and limp, food I’d given him days before. He’d return periodically to tell me he would be back the next day to remove it. Every ‘next day’ I circled his midden, noting how its contents had expanded: a shoe, a few more plastic bundles, food I’d given him the day before, an empty matchbox. Then quickly I walked away from its smell of Patrick. I was walking away from my own shame but, being the one more mute, knew not how to say it.

Preferences for telehealth: A qualitative study with people accessing a new mental health service.

To examine preferences for telehealth versus in-person services for people who sought mental health support from an unfamiliar service during the COVID-19 pandemic and to identify the factors that influenced these preferences. Data are drawn from semi-structured interviews with 45 participants (32 people who accessed mental health services, 7 informal support people, and 6 people who accessed services themselves as well as identifying as informal supports). Data relating to experiences of telehealth, comparisons with in-person services and preferences were coded inductively and analysed using qualitative content analysis. Just over half of the participants in our sample preferred telehealth or at least regarded it as a suitable option. Those who preferred telehealth were more likely to have had direct experience, particularly via videoconferencing, as part of their access to this new mental health service. Reasons for preferring in-person services included belief in the superiority of interpersonal communication in these settings, compatibility with personal communication style and discomfort with technology. Those preferring telehealth cited its convenience, elimination of the need to travel for services, the comfort and safety afforded by accessing services at home and the ability to communicate more openly. Hybrid models of care which harness the unique benefits of both in-person and remote service modalities appear to have a legitimate place in models of mental health care outside of pandemic situations. These results illuminate the potential of telehealth services when engaging with people seeking mental health help for the first time and in situations where existing relationships with service providers have not yet been established.

Spiritual Pain: A Symptom in Search of aClinical Definition.

We conducted a literature search to identify and compare definitions of the experiential dimension of spiritual pain. Key databases were searched, up to the year 2021 inclusive, for papers with a definition of “spiritual” or “existential” pain/distress in a clinical setting. Of 144 hits, seven papers provided theoretical definitions/descriptions; none incorporated clinical observations or underlying pathophysiological constructs. Based on these findings, we propose a new definition for “spiritual pain” as a “self-identified experience of personal discomfort, or actual or potential harm, triggered by a threat to a person’s relationship with God or a higher power.” Our updated definition can inform future studies in pain assessment and management.

The role of universities' sustainability, teachers' wellbeing, and attitudes toward e-learning during COVID-19.

In recent years, universities worldwide have experienced rapid changes with an immense impact, which have been influenced by technological progress and the social trends of digitalization. Like all other revolutionary changes, digital transformation involves intense adjustment/readjustment. University sustainability must be the active concern of all higher education institutions. Thus, the present research aims to analyse teachers' acceptance of new technologies and the impact on their wellbeing and university sustainability. The main objective was to analyse the acceptance of technology in special the e-learning opportunities and the wellbeing of teacher in an emergent country like Romania. To achieve our goal, we created a questionnaire based on the literature, and with the help of the technology acceptance model, we tested our hypotheses. The results indicate several discontents on the part of teachers concerning adapting to new technologies and even a personal discomfort in adapting to these new technologies. Thus, we can note that wellbeing significantly influences job satisfaction and teachers' involvement in sustainable development.

“Breaking Free”: A Grounded Theory Study of Atheist Women in the United States

Using a critical, grounded theory approach, we interviewed 31 atheist-identified women to ascertain the ways in which women develop and navigate an atheist identity and how their experience is influenced by patriarchal, hegemonic Christianity in the United States using a concealable stigmatized identity framework. Qualitative analysis resulted in six core categories: (1) Embracing Atheism as Liberation, (2) Escaping Christian Patriarchy, Challenging Atheist Patriarchy, (3) Low Identity Salience Provides Protection from Anti-Atheist Discrimination, (4) Expectations to Conform to Christian Norms, (5) Disclosure Requires Thoughtfulness and Purpose, and (6) Connecting with Other Atheists is Valuable and Elusive. Although atheist women experienced sexism within atheist communities that made connecting with other atheists challenging, participants viewed atheism as liberating them from religious patriarchy. Anti-atheist discrimination was common early in women’s atheist identity development, but not as frequent or salient over time. Rather, Christian hegemony and the expectation to adapt to Christian norms were more distressing than individual acts of anti-atheist discrimination. Therefore, concealment and disclosure were used to reduce personal discomfort and protect others’ feelings, rather than to avoid overt anti-atheist stigma. Integration with previous concealable stigmatized identity and atheism literature is discussed. In the interest of more equitable and healthy atheist communities for women atheists, community members and leaders are encouraged to dismantle patriarchy within secular organizations and center women’s voices and experiences. Clinicians and researchers can increase awareness of how hegemonic, patriarchal Christianity influences their professional work and the women they serve and eradicate such bias from their methods.

The theory of reasoned action in describing tongue cleaning adherence among college going students of Indie: A model guided study.

Just mere brushing of teeth is not enough for maintaining good oral health. Regular cleaning of tongue is equally important for maintaining good oral hygiene and to escape social embarrassment and personal discomfort, which could arise as a result of halitosis. To test the variables of Theory of Reasoned Action to explain the behavior of tongue cleaning among college going students of Udaipur city, Rajasthan, India. A descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted amongst 756 college going students of Udaipur city, India using an online self-administered structured questionnaire which was designed based on our study objectives. Logistic regression analysis and structural equation modelling (SEM) were employed for statistical analysis. Confidence level and level of significance were set at 95% and 5% respectively. Logistic regression analysis showed that with one unit increase in subjective norm, the tongue cleaning behavior odds increased significantly by 1.124. Also, the tongue cleaning behavior odds was 1.77 times significantly greater among those brushing their teeth twice a day than those brushing once a day. Structural Equation modelling also evidenced the significant direct effect of subjective norm on tongue cleaning behavior (β = 0.2, p≤0.05). Our results highlighted the importance of subjective norms in espousing tongue cleaning preventive behaviour habit. It is thus recommended to highpoint the role of significant others in changing tongue cleaning behaviour.

Testing links between pain-related biases in visual attention and recognition memory: An eye-tracking study based on an impending pain paradigm.

Although separate lines of research have evaluated pain-related biases in attention or memory, laboratory studies examining links between attention and memory for pain-related information have received little consideration. In this eye-tracking experiment, we assessed relations between pain-related attention biases (ABs) and recognition memory biases (MBs) among 122 pain-free adults randomly assigned to impending pain (n = 59) versus impending touch (n = 63) conditions, wherein offsets of trials that included pain images were followed by subsequent possibly painful and non-painful somatosensory stimulation, respectively. Gaze biases of participants were assessed during presentations of pain-neutral (P-N) and happy-neutral (H-N) face image pairs within these conditions. Subsequently, condition differences in recognition accuracy for previously viewed versus novel pained and happy face images were examined. Overall gaze durations were significantly longer for pain (vs. neutral) faces that signalled impending pain than impending non-painful touch, particularly among the less resilient in the former condition. Impending pain cohorts also exhibited comparatively better recognition accuracy for both pained and happy face images. Finally, longer gaze durations on pain faces that signalled potential pain, but not potential touch, were related to more accurate recognition of previously viewed pain faces. In sum, pain cues that signal potential personal discomfort maintain visual attention more fully and are subsequently recognised more accuracy than are pain cues that signal non-painful touch stimulation.

HALITOSIS ASSESSMENT IN PATIENTS WITH ORTHODONTIC APPLIANCE AND THEIR ASSOCIATION WITH BULLYING

Halitosis is the term used to define the unpleasant odor exhaled through exhaled air, which may be signaling a pathological, physiological or adaptive condition. Most individuals who present this alteration experience personal discomfort, social embarrassment and emotional anguish, which can cause serious disturbances of coexistence, especially in the school environment. The etiology of halitosis is multifactorial, but its main cause comes from the formation of volatile sulfur compounds (VSC) resulting from the proteolytic bacterial action on stagnant organic matter in the oral cavity. The use of orthodontic appliances may be an agent related to the development of this alteration, since it favors the accumulation of organic residues, epithelial desquamation, gingival inflammation, in addition to making local hygiene difficult. Therefore, the present study aims to evaluate the breath of patients with orthodontic appliances and also the possible presence of bullying related to such an event, in young adults aged between 18 and 24 years, students at Universidade Paulista de Brasília. Breath assessment was performed using an organoleptic test (gold standard), which is performed by the examiner’s sense of smell, and a Halimeter® portable monitor, and saliva assessment was performed using a sialometry test, in which the amount of saliva was evaluated. The possible relationship with bullying was assessed through a specific questionnaire. Of the twelve students included in the study, seven presented halitosis when evaluated through the organoleptic test, however, of these seven only two presented parameters compatible with halitosis, when evaluated by the Halimeter®. In relation to bullying, this study showed that it was present in the lives of many respondents, but not necessarily because of breath.

The relationship between burnout and empathy in physiotherapists: a cross-sectional study

Background There have been few studies carried out into empathy in physiotherapists. Burnout can debilitate the quality of care and the efficacy of treatment as the empathetic capacity of the professional diminishes. Objective The objective of the study was to examine the association between the construct burnout, empathy and sociodemographic aspects in Spanish physiotherapists. Methods A cross-sectional electronic survey including the Maslach Burnout Inventory (for burnout assessment), the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (for empathy assessment) and sociodemographic data was answered by 461 Spanish physical therapists. A descriptive, bivariate and lineal regression analysis was performed. Results There was an association between burnout and empathy. Specifically, higher levels of burnout are associated with lower levels of empathy, whilst years of work experience is associated with lower levels of burnout. Conclusions The results of this study contribute to a greater understanding of the relationship between the level of burnout and the dimensions of empathy in physiotherapists. The influence of burnout, which causes difficulties in the mobilization of the professional towards the establishment of a quality therapeutic relationship, is highlighted. KEY MESSAGES Emotional exhaustion is associated to greater personal discomfort and less empathy. The depersonalization is associated to personal discomfort and less empathy. Depersonalization is negatively associated to the lack of perspective.