The Lived Experience of Compassion Fatigue and Burnout in Social Workers
The Role of Moral Distress and Shame
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 2501741 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Susan L Glassburn, Susan Glassburn (0000-0001-7727-5713, Indiana University, corresponding author), Kathy Lay (0000-0002-3543-2669, Indiana University), Meredith Canada (0000-0002-6602-3091, Indiana University) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 25 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 418-435 |
| Publication date | 2025-07-09 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Advances in Social Work (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1527-8565 • E-ISSN: 2331-4125 |
| Publisher | IU Indianapolis University Library (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.18060/28019 |
| OpenAlex | W4412165240 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 18 |
Compassion fatigue and burnout evoke a professional and often personal crisis. This interpretative phenomenological analysis explored the lived experience of these phenomena for twelve social work professionals who self-identified as having an episode of compassion fatigue and/or burnout. While the literature is replete with many of the tangible factors that can lead to compassion fatigue and burnout, such as a toxic workplace, emotionally challenging clients/client stories, and personal vulnerabilities, few studies have explored the qualitative lived experience. During data analysis, two salient themes emerged from the stories of the participants: moral distress and shame. These concepts are explored in order to deepen the understanding and complexity of compassion fatigue and burnout. The implications of this study suggest that social work education, self-care, and supervision may not adequately prepare or buffer social workers from these phenomena
Burnout · Compassion · Compassion fatigue · Lived experience · Political science · Psychotherapist · Sociology · Clinical Psychology · Grit, Self-Efficacy, and Motivation · Healthcare Education and Workforce Issues · Psychology · Resilience and Mental Health · Social Psychology · Social Work
Vicarious traumatization
Compassion fatigue
Shame Resilience Theory
Understanding the burnout experience
Burnout in Social Work
A randomised trial of Mindfulness-based Social Work and Self-Care with social workers
Trauma, stress, and self-care in clinical training
The role of self-care on compassion satisfaction, burnout and secondary trauma among child welfare workers
The Role of Pride, Shame, Guilt, and Humiliation in Social Service Organizations
Exploring Moral Distress for Hospital Social Workers
Social Worker Well-being
Conceptualising Work-Related Moral Suffering—Exploring and Refining the Concept of Moral Distress in the Context of Social Work
The Relationships between Stress, Burnout, Mental Health and Well-Being in Social Workers
Compassion Fatigue Syndrome in Social Workers and Its relationship with Emotional Intelligence
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |