Prevalence and associated factors of burnout and anxiety among female migrant domestic helpers in Lebanon

Abstract

This study aims to evaluate the prevalence of burnout, anxiety symptoms and the associated factors among female migrant domestic helpers in Lebanon. A cross sectional study was carried out in Lebanon between August and October 2020. In total, 347 migrant domestic helpers from several nationalities participated in this study. The surveys were anonymous and administered to 102 respondents electronically via social media groups and WhatsApp platform. The rest of the participants responded to the surveys manually through the paper form of the questionnaires, in gathering points and places of migrant communities in Lebanon. The study included general demographic questions, queries about the domestic helpers’ working conditions and standardized validated tools to measure burnout (Burnout Measure) and anxiety (GAD-7). Overall, 69.8% of migrant domestic helpers in Lebanon were found to have burnout, including 27.7% who had a serious problem of burnout and 12.7% who required immediate help due to extremely high burnout. Additionally, 35.7% of our studied sample showed symptoms of moderate to severe anxiety. Certain demographics and working conditions such as age, nationality, hours of work per day, hours of sleep, ability to communicate and socialize freely, type of treatment by employer, were found to affect the level of burnout or anxiety among our participants. Moreover, our results indicated a positive relationship between burnout and anxiety among our sample population. The results of this study show high rates burnout, and anxiety among migrant domestic helpers in Lebanon. Associated factors were found to influence those symptoms of burnout and anxiety. It is vital that government officials and policymakers continue to tackle the working conditions and rights of migrant domestic helpers in Lebanon that affects their mental health and potentially discuss implementing support systems.