Method or madness: on the alienation of the professional

Burnout has affected a significant number of professionals in research and in clinical practice. The Marxian theory of alienation is insufficient to account for the phenomenon among professional workers. A critical factor in professional alienation is, paradoxically, the very factor which distinguishes the professional from the layman, namely the reliance on method and concept to develop knowledge. The alienating character of professional method may be observed in varying degrees in all human service professions. Method alienates the professional from the subject matter of interest, and to some degree from his or her own perceptions and interests. In the course of attempting to solve problems, too often the emphasis changes from understanding the substantive problem to checking and correcting artifacts of method, losing the focus on the original substantive problem, as the work turns in on itself. The cure requires professional social support for studies better suited to illuminate the human condition and to enlighten and intrigue the professional worker.