Universities worldwide are developing a disturbing imbalance with their environments. In
recent years, academic working conditions in South African universities have changed
dramatically as a result of the country's post-apartheid policies and the accelerating
globalisation of knowledge. Academic staff are continually confronted with an overload of
job demands without corresponding increases in job resources. These prolonged job stressors
that academic staff are subjected to over lengthy periods of time coupled with inadequate job
resources can lead to the development of a pathogenically defined construct, namely burnout.
The objective of this research was to investigate the relationships between burnout, strain, job
characteristics and dispositional optimism in universities in the North-West Province. A
cross-sectional design was used. The study population (N = 279) consisted of academic staff
of universities in the North-West Province. The Maslach Burnout Inventory - General Survey
(MBI-GS), The Life Orientation Test - Revised (LOT-R), Job Characteristics Scale (JCS)
and General Health Questionnaire (GHQI9) were used as measuring instruments. Descriptive
statistics (e.g. means, standard deviations and kurtosis) were used to analyse the data.
Exploratory factor analysis and structural equation modelling were used to confirm the
structure of the measuring instruments and to test theoretical models.
The results showed that the stressors of overload was associated with high levels of
exhaustion and low professional efficacy. Job resources (i.e. social support, task
characteristics) were related to low levels of exhaustion and cynicism and higher levels of
professional efficacy. Exhaustion and low professional efficacy were significantly related to
physical and psychological health problems. Exhaustion and cynicism were negatively
related to optimism, whereas professional efficacy were positively related to the latter.
Optimism moderated the effects of a lack of resources on exhaustion and the effects of job
resources on professional efficacy. / Thesis (M.Com. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2004.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:NWUBOLOKA1/oai:dspace.nwu.ac.za:10394/260 |
| Date | January 2004 |
| Creators | Barkhuizen, Emmerentia Nicolene |
| Publisher | North-West University |
| Source Sets | North-West University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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