Burnout and psychosomatic symptoms in female Lebanese frontline workers

Abstract

The local and international NGOs in Northern Lebanon have been working nonstop to provide Syrian refugees with assistance. This specific field of work posts a highly stressful and unstable working environment for Lebanese frontline workers, comprised of psychologists, social workers, and caseworkers, who are in direct contact with the suffering of refugees. This type of work can have highly damaging effects on the physical and mental well-being of said frontline workers (Meeusen et al., 2010). This study aims to understand the relationship between work-related burnout and psychosomatic symptoms exhibited in female frontline workers who are between the ages of 20 and 45 years old who have been working in an NGO and INGO in northern Lebanon for at least one year. To assess burnout on the exhaustion and depersonalization dimensions, the Oldenburg Burnout Inventory (OLBI) was chosen for this study while the Somatic Symptoms Experience Questionnaire (SSEQ) was used to assess psychosomatic symptoms that are work-related. The 2 questionnaires were combined into an online survey form that was completed by 79 frontline workers, of which 65 were considered eligible for the study. The results indicated suggest a moderate positive correlation between burnout and psychosomatic symptoms, r(63) = .54, p < .00001. These findings are related to frontline workers who have been working at the NGO/INGO between 2 to 4 years and who are between the ages of 30 and 40. These findings indicate that frontline workers who exhibit symptoms of burnout are at a higher risk of exhibiting psychosomatic symptoms. Several limitations exist in the current study, such as a small sample size. Therefore, the findings must be interpreted with caution.