Hospital Practices and Research

Investigating the Role of Emotional Exhaustion on Self-Compassion in Nurses with the Mediation of Empathy during the Outbreak of COVID-19

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Amir Bahador Broumand Jezi 1
Mehdi Nasr Esfahani 1
Zeinab Gholipour 2
Somayeh Shadbakht 1
Davoud Mohammadi 1

1 Department of Emergency Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran

2 Department of Health Service Management, faculty of Dentistry, Shiraz Branch, Islamic Azad University, Shiraz, Iran

https://doi.org/10.30491/hpr.2024.396511.1392
Abstract
Background: The outbreak of COVID-19 has put more pressure on the medical staff.
Objectives: The current study was performed to determine the role of emotional exhaustion on self-compassion in nurses via the mediation of empathy during the outbreak of COVID-19.
Methods: The present study was a descriptive and analytical study conducted on 150 nurses working in Al-Zahra and Kashani hospitals in Isfahan, Iran in 2021. The data were collected by three standard questionnaires of Emotional exhaustion (Chen), Self-compassion (Neff), and Empathy (Davis) and were analyzed in SPSS version 24 and LISREL8 software.
Results: The results of the study revealed that the three variables of self-compassion, empathy and emotional exhaustion are not significantly different according to the demographic characteristics of nurses (P>0.05). There was a direct and significant relationship between empathy and emotional exhaustion (P<0.05). Ultimately, the proposed model has a good fit and in the direct and indirect relationships of the model, the role of empathy as a mediator between emotional exhaustion and self-compassion is confirmed.
Conclusion: In line with the obtained results, it is suggested that considering the spread of a deadly infectious disease, appropriate educational measures and strategies should be implemented to promote or boost the spirit of empathy among health sector employees, especially nurses.

Keywords

Emotional Exhaustion
Self-Compassion
Empathy
Nurse
COVID-19
  1. Damghanian H, Keshavarz M. Effect of Psychological contract breach on emotional exhaustion of employees considering the mediating role of Affective organizational commitment and Affective commitment to supervisor. J Dev Evol Manag. 2019;4(38):43-51.
  2. Jafarli F, Doroudi H. The effect of Emotional labor strategies and Emotional exhaustion and job satisfaction on Student satisfaction. JNAEA. 2020;11 (44):101-20.
  3. Vafaee Najar A, Vahedian Shahroody M, Dogonchi M, Dogonchi AM. The effectiveness of physical activity training on emotional exhaustion of employees in city of Agh Ghala-2013. Pajouhan Sci J. 2017;15(2):20-6. doi:10.21859/psj-15024
  4. Damghanian H, Keshavarz M. Effect of Procedural Justice on Emotional Exhaustion of Employees through Mediating Role of Psychological Contract Violation. Journal of Human Resources Studies. 2019(33):125-48. doi:10.22034/jhrs.2019.103658
  5. Sabzi A, Ramezani U, Sajjad A. The Effect of Destructive Supervisory Behaviors on Knowledge Sharing on the Role of Mediator of Emotional Exhaustion and the Moderating Role of Organizational Justice. J Public Adm. 2019;11(2):339-54. doi:10.220 59/jipa.2019.268797.2412
  6. Cocker F, Joss N. Compassion fatigue among healthcare, emergency and community service workers: A systematic review. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2016;13(6):618. doi:10.3390/ijerph13060618
  7. Gallagher R. Compassion fatigue. Can Fam Physician. 2013;59(3):265-8.
  8. Al Barmawi MA, Subih M, Salameh O, Sayyah Yousef Sayyah N, Shoqirat N, Abdel‐Azeez Eid Abu Jebbeh R. Coping strategies as moderating factors to compassion fatigue among critical care nurses. Brain Behav. 2019;9(4):e01264. doi:10.1002/brb3.1264
  9. Zeidner M, Hadar D, Matthews G, Roberts RD. Personal factors related to compassion fatigue in health professionals. Anxiety Stress Coping. 2013;26 (6):595-609. doi:10.1080/10615806.2013.777045
  10. Ruiz-Fernndez MD, Prez-Garca E, Ortega-Galn Quality of life in nursing professionals: Burnout, fatigue, and compassion satisfaction. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020;17(4):1253. doi:10.3390/ijerph17041253
  11. Yang C, Chen Y, Zhao X. Emotional labor: scale development and validation in the Chinese context. Front Psychol. 2019;10:2095. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02095
  12. Sotodeh Asl N, Bakhtiari AH. Occupational exhaustion and its related factors in nurses and midwives of semnan university of medical sciences. Sci J Kurdistan Univ Med Sci. 2006;11(1):77-83.
  13. Neff KD. The self-compassion scale is a valid and theoretically coherent measure of self-compassion. Mindfulness. 2016;7:264-74. doi:10.1007/s12671-015-0479-3
  14. Davis MH. Measuring individual differences in empathy: Evidence for a multidimensional approach. J Pers Soc Psychol. 1983;44(1):113-26. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.44.1.113
  15. Feizabadi Z, Farzad V, Shahraray M. Investigating the relationships between empathy, identity styles and commitment in humanities and technical-engineering students. J Psychol Stud. 2007;3(2):65-90.
  16. Yaghoubi S, Akrami N. The Effect Social Interest Training on Lifestyle in Bullying and Victim Adolescences. Posit Psychol Res. 2017;2(3):35-48. doi:10.22108/ppls.2017.21519
  17. Raab K. Mindfulness, self-compassion, and empathy among health care professionals: a review of the literature. J Health Care Chaplain. 2014;20(3):95-108. doi:10.1080/08854726.2014.913876
  18. Gerber Z, Anaki D. The role of self-compassion, concern for others, and basic psychological needs in the reduction of caregiving burnout. Mindfulness. 2021;12:741-50. doi:10.1007/s12671-020-01540-1
  19. Bluth K, Blanton PW. The influence of self-compassion on emotional well-being among early and older adolescent males and females. J Posit Psychol. 2015;10(3):219-30. doi:10.1080/17439760.2014.936 967
  20. Duarte J, Pinto-Gouveia J, Cruz B. Relationships between nurses’ empathy, self-compassion and dimensions of professional quality of life: A cross-sectional study. Int J Nurs Stud. 2016;60:1-11. doi:10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2016.02.015
  21. Rodriguez-Nogueira O, Leiros-Rodriguez R, Pinto-Carral A, lvarez-lvarez MJ, Morera-Balaguer J, Moreno-Poyato AR. Relationship between competency for evidence-based practice and level of burnout of physical therapists with the establishment of the therapeutic relationship. Physiother Theory Pract. 2024;40(2):357-65. doi:10.1080/09593985.2022.2112638
  22. Sturzu L, Lala A, Bisch M, Guitter M, Dobre D, Schwan R. Empathy and burnout–a cross-sectional study among mental healthcare providers in France. J Med Life. 2019;12(1):21-9. doi:25122/jml-2018-0050
  23. Hashem Z, Zeinoun P. Self-compassion explains less burnout among healthcare professionals. Mindfulness. 2020;11(11):2542-51. doi:10.1007/s12671-020-0146 9-5
  24. Jang MH, Jeong YM, Park G. Influence of the subfactors of self‐compassion on burnout among hospital nurses: A cross‐sectional study in south Korea. J Nurs Manag. 2022;30(4):993-1001. doi:10.1111/jonm.13572
  25. Martnez‐Rubio D, Martnez‐Brotons C, Monreal‐Bartolom A, Barceló‐Soler A, Campos D, Prez‐Aranda A, et al. Protective role of mindfulness, self‐compassion and psychological flexibility on the burnout subtypes among psychology and nursing undergraduate students. J Adv Nurs. 2021;77(8):3398-411. doi:10.1111/jan.14870
Hospital Practices and Research
Volume 8, Issue 4 - Serial Number 32
Autumn 2023
Pages 355-361

Home

Guide for Authors

Submit Manuscript

Reviewers

Contact Us