Development and Validation of a Measuring Instrument for Burnout Syndrome in Teachers

• Published in: The Spanish journal of psychology 2012-11, Vol.15 (3), p.1456-1465
• Main Authors: Mantilla, Jesús Miguel Rodríguez, Díaz, Mª José Fernández
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Biological and medical sciences; Burnout, Professional - psychology; Educational psychology; Factor Analysis, Statistical; Faculty - statistics & numerical data; Female; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Orientation. Evaluation; Psychology; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Psychometrics - instrumentation; Psychometrics - standards; Reproducibility of Results; Schools - manpower; Surveys and Questionnaires - standards; Syndrome
• ISSN: 1138-7416; 1988-2904
• DOI: 10.5209/rev_SJOP.2012.v15.n3.39429

This paper is part of a research done on Burnout Syndrome, and its objective is to develop and validate an instrument for measuring the syndrome in Secondary School teachers, taking as a principal starting point Maslach, Schaufeli, and Leiter's theory (2001). After developing and testing the instrument on a sample of 794 teachers in the Community of Madrid (Spain), we analyzed the reliability, content and construct validity (the latter by means of Structural Equations Models implemented with Software AMOS 7.0). The reliability analysis (α = .911 for the total instrument; .849, .899 and .674 for the dimensions of Exhaustion, Reduced Personal Accomplishment and Depersonalization respectively) and the Confirmatory Factorial Analysis (CMIN/DF = 4.163, CFI = .904, RMSEA = .60, PRATIO = .874) showed highly satisfactory results. The discrimination coefficient scores for items in the final instrument ranged between .22 and .74. Thus, the instrument presented combines the necessary technical characteristics for it to be considered a valid and reliable tool for measuring the syndrome. El presente estudio forma parte de una investigación sobre el síndrome de Burnout y su objetivo, en este caso, es elaborar y validar un instrumento de medida del síndrome en profesores de Secundaria partiendo, principalmente, de la teoría de Maslach, Schaufeli, y Leiter (2001). Tras la elaboración y aplicación del instrumento a una muestra de 794 docentes de la Comunidad de Madrid, se analizó la fiabilidad, la validez de contenido y de constructo (ésta última a través de Modelos de Ecuaciones Estructurales con la aplicación informática AMOS 7.0). Los resultados obtenidos en el análisis de fiabilidad (α = .911 para la totalidad del instrumento, .849, .899 y .674 para las dimensiones de Agotamiento, Baja Realización y Despersonalización respectivamente) y en el Análisis Factorial Confirmatorio fueron altamente satisfactorios (CMIN/DF = 4.163, CFI = .904, RMSEA = .06, PRATIO = .874). Los valores del coeficiente de discriminación de los ítems del instrumento final oscilaron entre .22 y .74. Por todo ello, el instrumento presentado reúne las características técnicas exigidas para ser considerada una herramienta válida y fiable para medir el síndrome.