Burnout in teachers: an Italian survey

Over the past 50 years, education has become more complex. The demand for quality and accountability in education had also increased. These demands have increased pressure on teachers, with the result that teaching is now regarded by teachers as highly stressful. The purpose of the study was to examine burnout among teachers in a region of Italy including the risk factors of burnout and the strategies used by teachers to prevent and deal with stress. The research was carried out on a sample of 508 teachers. The questionnaire incorporated the Maslach Burnout Inventory modified for Italian teachers--a 22 item questionnaire designed to assess the three aspects of burnout syndrome: emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and lack of personal achievement. The results highlight the presence of substantial levels of emotional exhaustion in a significant number of teachers. The rate of burnout among teachers is 19.7%. The data are lower than for a sample of Italy as a whole and than for European countries where rates of burnout range between 25% and 35%.