Burnout has become a mental health crisis.
Burnout has been the subject of research for almost 50 years. In the 1970’s two psychologists, Dr. Christina Maslach and Dr. Herbert Freudenberger, began studying burnout in caregivers and their research made burnout a household term. The Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) remains the gold standard for assessing burnout.
In 2018, burnout was officially recognized by the World Health Organization as an occupational phenomenon brought on by workplace stress and characterized by three traits: exhaustion, cynicism and lack of efficacy.
Further research has shown that burnout causes neuroendocrine disruption and neurological disfunction. The effects on the brain include reduced gray matter, difficulty controlling strong emotional responses, impaired cognition, impaired memory and impaired attention.