Reducing Burnout in Athletes

REDUCING BURNOUT IN ATHLETES

WHAT IS BURNOUT?

  • Definition and Origins

    • Significant roots in occupational psychology.

    • Initially observed in the 1970s, primarily among those in caring professions.

    • Associated researchers:

    • Freudenberger (1974)

    • Maslach & Pines (1977)

    • Maslach's Definition:

    • Described as a “multidimensional syndrome that theoretically arises as a consequence of work stress.”

    • Three Main Symptoms:

    1. Emotional Exhaustion

    2. Cynicism

    3. Reduced Professional Efficacy

WHAT IS BURNOUT?

  • Burnout in athletes wasn’t not really studied until 2000s

    • The study of burnout among athletes only gained traction in the 2000s.

  • Raedeke & Smith (2001)

    • Restructured the traditional symptoms to better suit athlete contexts:

    1. Physical and Emotional Exhaustion

    2. Devaluation or Cynicism directed specifically at sport

    3. Reduced Sense of Accomplishment

    • Developed the Athlete Burnout Questionnaire (ABQ) as a measurement tool:

    • Declared the “gold standard” for athlete burnout measurement.

    • Comprises 15 items, with 5 items for each category of symptoms listed above.

    • Uses a Likert scale to gauge the frequency of symptoms.

    • Applicable across various ages and competitive levels.

HOW DOES BURNOUT DEVELOP? - THREE THEORIES

  • Smith’s (1986) Cognitive-Affective Model

    • Proposes burnout develops due to chronic stress resulting from:

    • An imbalance between demands in training and athletes' coping resources.

    • Chronic imbalance can lead to negative emotions (e.g., anxiety) and rigid behaviors such as withdrawal, which subsequently cause burnout.

    • Behavioral response is development of burnout

  • Raedeke’s (1997) Commitment Model

    • Defines commitment as the desire and resolve to participate in sports:

    • Three factors influencing commitment:

      1. Enjoyment of the activity.

      2. Perceived attractiveness of alternative activities.

      3. Perceived constraints on withdrawal from sport.

    • Different perceptions of these factors inform if participation stems from enjoyment or entrapment.

    • Entrapment:

    • Described as feeling obligated to participate (“because I have to”) instead of wanting to, which can lead to burnout.

    • Raedeke’s say feeling like you have to participate in a sport leads to a decrease in intrinsic motivation, further exacerbating feelings of burnout and disengagement from the sport.

  • Deci and Ryan’s (2002) Self-Determination Theory

    • Argues that social and environmental conditions can either satisfy or thwart basic human needs, specifically:

    • Autonomy

    • Relatedness

    • Competence

    • Athletes facing a controlling environment (e.g., an authoritative coach) may have needs thwarted, develop extrinsic motives for participation, and ultimately face burnout.

KEY TAKEAWAYS ON BURNOUT DEVELOPMENT

  • A substantial number of studies link stress to burnout. (Lin et al., 2021)

  • Perfectionism is also closely associated with burnout. (Hill & Curran, 2016)

  • Commitment serves as a vital correlate to burnout. (Woods et al., 2020)

  • Burnout is regularly connected with need thwarting and maladaptive forms of motivation, particularly controlling types.

WHY IS BURNOUT IMPORTANT?

  • Common misconceptions about athletes include the assumption that they are entirely healthy and less prone to mental health issues:

    • This assumption is inaccurate; burnout exemplifies this issue.

  • Research indicates that despite low to moderate averages of burnout, a significant percentage of athletes still experience moderate to severe levels. (Gustafsson et al., 2007)

  • Trends suggest that levels of burnout tend to increase as the sports season progresses, leading to more severe symptoms.

  • Burnout's link to mental health, well-being, and performance impairments includes:

    • Depression

    • Worry

    • Anxiety

    • Performance Impairment

    • Disengagement from sport activities.

REDUCING BURNOUT IN ATHLETES

  • Possible interventions can address factors at the individual level (e.g., stress management training) and the organizational level (e.g., adjusting work hours).

  • Three key studies have tested intervention effectiveness for athletes:

    • Focused on self-regulation, gratitude, and self-determination theory.

    • All three studies reported beneficial outcomes on athlete burnout to some extent.

    • Notably, only one study employed a randomized controlled design, which is preferred for robust evidence guiding practice.

    • There exists a limited base of information to formulate broad recommendations for assisting athletes.

    • Extensive burnout research exists in contexts outside of sports.

OVERVIEW OF RESEARCH ON BURNOUT

  • Individual Interventions:

    • Resulted in significant reductions in burnout in approximately 35% of cases; effectiveness can vary.

    • Predominantly successful interventions employed cognitive-based therapies to alleviate stress:

    • Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

    • Stress Management Techniques

    • Relaxation Techniques

    • Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)

    • These methods work by altering underlying thought processes while maintaining a present, non-judgmental awareness.

    • Most success identified in contexts such as teachers, nurses, and physicians.

  • Organizational Interventions:

    • These approaches showed effective outcomes in approximately 85% of cases compared to individual interventions.

    • Principal methods include:

    1. Altering Workload:

      • Techniques such as reducing work hours and shortening shift lengths.

    2. Enhancing Team Dynamics:

      • Focused on improving communication on interpersonal and hierarchical levels.

    • Studies primarily included physician populations; generalizability remains uncertain.

INDIVIDUAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL INTERVENTIONS

  • Combination Interventions:

    • Mixed interventions were effective at reducing burnout 57% of the time, combining strategies from both categories:

    • Stress Management

    • Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy: Focused on identifying and changing irrational beliefs.

    • Improvements in communication strategies.

KEY FINDINGS

  • Effectiveness of Burnout Interventions:

    • Evidence supports that burnout interventions can be effective!

    • Organizational interventions tend to be more effective than individual interventions.

    • Individual interventions are more widely utilized.

    • Most studies have centered on physician organizations.

  • Applicability to athletes and sport organizations:

    • Both individual and organizational strategies could be relevant in sports contexts.

    • Most Effective Individual Intervention:

    • Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is emphasized for helping athletes manage stress by reframing situations as less stressful.

    • Organizational Interventions in Sports:

    • May benefit from utilizing Self-Determination Theory (SDT) as a foundational approach to understanding the impact of environment on athlete wellness.

    • Consideration of both individual and organizational methods is advisable for effective intervention.

    • Sport-specific interventions should be designed targeting both the athlete's domain and those impacting their experience (e.g., coaches).

    • Enhancing awareness and understanding of burnout among athletes and coaches is critical to recognizing symptoms in oneself or others.

    • Prevention strategies, especially early intervention, are paramount to reducing burnout scenarios.

VIDEO & READINGS

  • The Burnout Is Real: Tips for Understanding and Avoiding Burnout (YouTube)

  • Keeping the Sparks Aflame: Preventing and Addressing Burnout in High School Student-Athletes | Association for Applied Sport Psychology

SUMMARY

  • Athletes remain at high risk for burnout, yet there is limited insight into effective intervention methods when symptoms arise.

  • Insights from outside the sports realm can inform interventions:

    • Cognitive-based individual interventions and SDT-based organizational strategies provide a sound foundation for developing sport-specific interventions.

  • This framework equips practitioners with the necessary means to recognize, prevent, and mitigate burnout among athletes.