What Exactly is Burnout?

Earlier this year, the World Health Organisation (WHO) officially included burnout in the 11th Revision of the International Classification of Diseases and recognised it as an "occupational phenomenon." So, what exactly is burnout and how does it affect workers around the world?

According to WHO, “burn-out is a syndrome conceptualised as resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed." The occupational condition is characterised by three major symptoms:

• Feelings of exhaustion and lack of energy
• A negative or cynical attitude towards one's role and increased mental distance from the job
• Significant reduction in professional efficacy

A build-up of chronic workplace stress

Burnout can affect workers in any field, though WHO notes that it's often associated with jobs that come with high levels of stress, including police work, social work, healthcare and customer services. Burnout is also associated with long hours and an intense workload, which makes it common among lawyers, doctors and academics. Factors such as a toxic work environment, workplace bullying and financial stress can also come into play.

Recognising the difference between moderate work-related stress and burnout is important, with mental health trainer Tania Diggory asserting, "the difference between burnout and work-related stress is the point at which it becomes a serious health issue." She explains that over time, high levels of stress can build and trigger feelings of anxiety. "This can lead to chronic stress and our cognitive skills can become impaired. By this, I mean that our working memory, our ability to think logically and carry out tasks effectively isn't as sharp as it usually is," she explains.

The dangers of peer-to-peer pressure and "should-based thinking"

One of the major contributing factors to burnout is natural peer-to-peer pressure. While in some cases pressure to perform can be inspiring and motivational, experts warn that constantly comparing performance to colleagues can be extremely damaging. Diggory also targets a growing trend for "should-based thinking", a pattern driven by modern technology such as smartphones. This can drive people to compromise leisure activities and personal relationships in order to focus on their work life.

"From my observation, modern day society is driven so much by technology that we are experiencing an ever-on culture, where you can be online, contactable, and search for information 24/7 — for the human body and its sensory system, this can be overwhelming in large volumes," she warns. "In the context of business, while there are multiple benefits to being more globally connected than ever before, I've personally noticed a growing epidemic of should-based thinking. Because we can work anytime, it doesn't mean we need to."

The addition of burnout to the latest International Classification of Diseases diagnostic tool reflects the organisation's commitment to improving mental health in the workplace and developing evidence-based guidelines on how to recognise and treat the condition.

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