RESUMO
BACKGROUND: This cross-sectional study aimed to examine the relationship between several dimensions of the burnout syndrome with certain stress-coping strategies, seniority level and marital status in male staff from National Police in Vaparaíso, Chile. METHODS: The sample collected in 2010 was composed of 338 male officers coming from various special units of a National Police in Valparaíso. Burnout and Coping Strategies were assessed and classified according Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) and COPE Inventory, respectively. Data was analyzed using Pearson product-moment correlation, t-test for independent measures and Multiple Linear Regression to generate a predictive model. RESULTS: The prevalence of the burnout syndrome disaggregated by grouping criteria, the dimensions concentrated in middle levels for emotional exhaustion with a 52.1%, a 51.8% for depersonalization and finally, personal achievement with a 48.8%. Only 28% of participants showed more exacerbated dimensions of the burnout syndrome. There was a weak and direct yet statistically significant relationship between personal achievement and active coping. Mental disconnection had a weak direct relationship between both coping strategies and emotional exhaustion also existed. Certain correlations between burnout dimensions and coping strategies focused on emotion as predictor variables over the criterion variable corresponding to emotional exhaustion were mental disconnection in first place, secondly, focusing on emotions, and emotional social support. CONCLUSIONS: Burnout dimensions scored medium values ââfocusing mainly on emotional exhaustion and reduced personal accomplishment. Coping strategies are used in parallel and in general are not mutually exclusive. Finally, there were not any relationship between variables seniority level and marital status.
RESUMO
El artículo se refiere a una investigación cuantitativa para verificar la presencia de Síndrome de Burnout y su relación con estrategias de afrontamiento al estrés, efectuada a 115 Carabineros de ambos sexos, de determinadas unidades especializadas de Carabineros de Chile, a quienes se les aplicó el Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) y la Escala de Evaluación de Técnicas de Afrontamiento (C.O.P.E.). Se constató que un alto porcentaje (48,7 por ciento) del personal que labora en tales unidades policiales que se preocupan de problemáticas humanas de complejidad e impacto (maltrato y abuso de menores, muertes por accidentes de tránsito y delitos de magnitud), muestran altos indicadores del síndrome. Se encontró también que las personas casadas mostraban significativamente más aumentada la estrategia Disminución del logro personal respecto de las solteras y que las mujeres utilizaban significativamente más la estrategia de afrontamiento Religión respecto de los hombres, tal como el Personal de Nombramiento Institucional la usa con mayor frecuencia que respecto del Personal de Nombramiento Supremo. Por último, se constató que las estrategias Centrarse en las emociones, Desconexión mental y Búsqueda de apoyo social emocional predicen significativamente el Agotamiento emocional del Síndrome de Burnout, tal como Negación, Desconexión mental y Desconexión conductual predicen la dimensión Despersonalización.
The article refers to a quantitative research intended to verify the presence of the burnout syndrome and its relationship with strategies for coping with stress, performed on 115 Carabineros, both male and female, belonging to determined specialized units of Carabineros de Chile, to whom the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) and the Coping Orientations to Problems Experienced Scale (C.O.P.E.) were applied. It was proved that a high percentage (48,7 percent) of personnel working in said police units which deal with human problems which are complex and have an impact (mistreatment and abuse of minors, deaths resulting from car accidents and major offenses), show high indicators of the syndrome . It was also found that married people showed a significantly augmented Decrease of personal achievement strategy compared with single women and that women used significantly more the Religion coping technique than men, as Institutional Appointed Personnel uses it more frequently compared with Government Appointed Personnel. Lastly, it was confirmed that strategies such as Focusing on emotions, Mental disconnection and Search or social emotional support predict significantly the Emotional exhaustion of the burnout syndrome, as Denial, Mental disconnection and Behavioral Disconnection predict the Depersonalization dimension.