Burnout experiences among school counselors in Baguio City

Abstract

This is a narrative study on the concept and process of burnout as experienced by school counselors in Baguio City. Respondents were twelve counselors who admitted that they have experienced burnout. The descriptive phase of the study summarized the narrative of each respondent and arranged the narratives by identifying three key features: the Beginning, the Middle and the End. The interpretative phase of the study analyzed the narratives as a whole and classified these narratives into three categories: Progressive, stable and regressive narratives. Progressive narrative is a narrative structure, which shows that the counselor's experience of burnout provided them new opportunities for personal and professional development. Stable narrative shows that the counselor's experience of burnout is still on going and the counselor is continually learning how to deal with burnout more effectively. Regressive narrative is a narrative structure that refers to those counselors whose lives have not changed or negatively changed after they experience burnout. The results of the study showed that burnout develops as job satisfaction decreases. Burnout does not develop immediately but is experienced at different degrees through a period of time. Alongside the experience of burnout is the experience of coping. Coping is concurrently experience with burnout in a variety of ways and at different levels of magnitude. Initially the three narrative categories were used to classify the kinds of narratives presented but the researcher found out that the concurrent coping response to burnout of each counselor was also a determinant of the kind of narrative presented. Progressive coping response was an attempt to deal with the burnout as soon it started and was already strong from the start. Counselors who told the progressive narratives used more of the problem focused response, and dealt with burnout responsibly. Counselors who told stable narratives used more of the emotional focused coping response, they adopted temporary coping styles, and thus burnout was still on going as of the time of the interview. Finally, counselors who told regressive narratives used coping response, which were weak from the start of the burnout, thus burnout ruled over them, leaving them negatively affected and dissatisfied with their jobs.