Emotional Burnout and Stress in Social Workers

The authors present an overview of the latest foreign studies on the problem of emotional burnout and occupational stress in social workers, clarify concepts, analyze trends and conclusions. It is especially important to observe the researches of the 2020s, when society was faced with new challenges (the COVID-19 pandemic, social conflicts and disasters), increasing the workload and stress for social workers. The article analyzes different approaches to the study of stress and burnout, including those in social work and empirical studies in different countries that show that social workers get a higher level of stress and, as a result, emotional burnout, than comparable professional groups. The conclusion about the impact of emotional burnout of social workers on their mental and physical health is summarized. The sources contributing to the occurrence of stress and emotional burnout are determined, which come from the practice of social work itself, are associated with contradictions between values and work requirements, as well as with the organization of the working environment. The necessity of early prevention of professional burnout in the social sphere through support is substantiated.

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