Abstract
M.A.
From the conceptualisation of burnout in the 1970’s until present day, burnout
has been recognised as a significant problem for both individuals and
organisations. Although originally confined to the helping professions, the notion
that burnout can also occur in university students has recently emerged.
University students experience a myriad of stressors on a daily basis, and may
develop burnout and several of the symptoms of burnout. This in turn may have
deleterious consequences for both the student and the university. With the
recently developed Maslach Burnout Inventory - Student Survey, the examination
of burnout in university students has received increasingly more research
attention. However, the psychometric properties of this instrument has received
limited research attention in South Africa. The relationship between burnout and
personality has also received limited attention, both internationally and in South
Africa. The role of personality in burnout is considered pertinent to a complete
conceptualisation of the antecedents to burnout. Recent research suggests that
Neuroticism and Extroversion tend to consistently demonstrate a relationship
with burnout.
The present study aimed to explore the notion of burnout in university students in
the South African context, relying on the three-factor structure definition of
burnout as forwarded by Maslach and Jackson (1981). These three factors,
namely emotional exhaustion, depersonalisation and reduced personal
accomplishment were complemented with a fourth structure, namely professional
inefficacy, as suggested by Bresó, Salanova and Schaufeli (2007) and Schaufeli
and Salanova (2007).