Meaning in life, burnout, depressive and anxiety symptoms, and suicidality in psychiatrists: A structural equation...

Psychiatrists face occupational psychological burden, yet the interrelationships among burnout, depressive and anxiety symptoms, and suicidality in this population remain poorly characterised. This cross-sectional study examined whether meaning in life (operationalised as presence of meaning and search for meaning) was associated with burnout, depressive and anxiety symptoms, and suicidality among psychiatrists, and examined direct and indirect associations among these variables using structural equation modelling.

A total of 233 psychiatrists (70.4% female; mean age 34.48 ± 9.81 years; 60.1% residents) completed self-report measures including the Meaning in Life Questionnaire, Maslach Burnout Inventory, Beck Depression and Anxiety Inventories, and Suicidal Behaviors Questionnaire. The final structural model demonstrated good fit (CFI = 0.989, TLI = 0.977, RMSEA = 0.045, SRMR = 0.034).

Presence of meaning showed significant negative direct associations with burnout (β = -0.524), depressive symptoms (β = -0.284), and suicidality (β = -0.259), each independent of one another. Search for meaning was positively associated with burnout (β = 0.274) and showed a supported positive indirect association with suicidality through burnout and depressive symptoms. Burnout was associated with both depressive and anxiety symptoms, which in turn showed direct positive associations with suicidality; burnout was also indirectly associated with suicidality through depressive symptoms, whereas no indirect association involving anxiety symptoms was supported.

Presence of meaning may represent a clinically relevant correlate of lower suicidality in psychiatrists, with a significant direct association observed in the estimated model alongside associations with lower burnout and depressive symptoms. Cross-sectional design limits causal inference.