J Adv Nurs. 2021 Aug;77(8):3398-3411. doi: 10.1111/jan.14870. Epub 2021 Apr 27.

Protective role of mindfulness, self-compassion and psychological flexibility on the burnout subtypes among psychology and nursing undergraduate students.

Journal of advanced nursing

David Martínez-Rubio, Cristina Martínez-Brotons, Alicia Monreal-Bartolomé, Alberto Barceló-Soler, Daniel Campos, Adrián Pérez-Aranda, Ariadna Colomer-Carbonell, Sergio Cervera-Torres, Silvia Solé, Yolanda Moreno, Jesús Montero-Marín

PMID: 33905551 DOI: 10.1111/jan.14870

Abstract

AIMS: To explore the relationship between mindfulness, self-compassion and psychological flexibility, and the burnout subtypes in university students of the Psychology and Nursing degrees, and to analyse possible risk factors for developing burnout among socio-demographic and studies-related characteristics.

DESIGN: Cross-sectional study conducted on a sample of 644 undergraduate students of Nursing and Psychology from two Spanish universities.

METHODS: The study was conducted between December 2015 and May 2016. Bivariate Pearson's correlations were computed to analyse the association between mindfulness facets, self-compassion and psychological flexibility, and levels of burnout. Multivariate linear regression models and bivariate and multivariate binary logistic regressions were also computed.

RESULTS: The three subtypes of burnout presented significant correlations with psychological flexibility, self-compassion and some mindfulness facets. Psychological flexibility, self-compassion and the mindfulness facets of observing and acting with awareness were significantly associated to burnout. Among the risk factors, 'year of study' was the only variable to show significantly higher risk for every burnout subtype.

CONCLUSION: The significant associations found between mindfulness, self-compassion, psychological flexibility and burnout levels underline the need of including these variables as therapeutic targets when addressing the burnout syndrome in university students.

IMPACT: Undergraduate students, especially those of health sciences, often experience burnout. This study delves into the protective role of some psychological variables: mindfulness, self-compassion and psychological flexibility. These should be considered as potentially protective skills for developing burnout, and therefore, undergraduate students could be trained on these abilities to face their studies and their future profession to prevent experiencing burnout syndrome.

© 2021 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Keywords: cross-sectional study; mindfulness; nursing; psychological flexibility; self-compassion; university students

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MeSH terms

• Burnout, Professional*
• Cross-Sectional Studies
• Empathy
• Humans
• Mindfulness*
• Students, Nursing*

Publication Types

• Journal Article

Grant support

• FI17/00180/Institute of Health Carlos III
• CD20/00181/Institute of Health Carlos III
• FPU014/04987/Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports
• Institute of Health Research of Aragon (IIS) of Zaragoza
• 104908/Z/14/Z//WellcomeTrust Grant