Volunteer work in health care: self perception, stress and burnout

Authors

  • André Luís Ferreira Moniz
  • Tereza Cristina Cavalcanti Ferreira de Araújo

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5380/psi.v10i2.7680

Keywords:

volunteer work, health, self-perception, stress, burnout

Abstract

 

Volunteer work in health care is expanding as an answer to the diversification of the social demands and, in counterpart, to the constant lacks in this area. Therefore, it is essential to understand the nature of the volunteer work and its consequences for the provider of this service. The aim of this study was to describe the perception of volunteers about their work and to evaluate the level of stress and burnout in volunteers. Structured interviews were carried out with 39 volunteers, followed by the application of Lipp and Guevara’s Stress Symptom Inventory and the Maslach Burnout Inventory. Low scores of stress and burnout were found. However, eight volunteers presented stress symptoms of psychological or somatic nature and four revealed high levels of burnout related to depersonalization and emotional exhaustion. Most of the participants reported personal history factors connected to sickness. The data suggest the hypothesis that the volunteer work constitutes a way of coping.

Keywords: volunteer work; health; self-perception; stress; burnout.

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How to Cite

Moniz, A. L. F., & de Araújo, T. C. C. F. (2006). Volunteer work in health care: self perception, stress and burnout. Interação Em Psicologia, 10(2). https://doi.org/10.5380/psi.v10i2.7680

Issue

Vol. 10 No. 2 (2006)

Section

Articles

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