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Emotional demands and exhaustion: cross-sectional and longitudinal associations in a cohort of Danish public sector employees

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Abstract

Purpose

To examine cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between content-related emotional demands at work and exhaustion, and to investigate if these associations were modified by other psychosocial work characteristics.

Methods

In 2007, 4489 Danish public service employees participated in the PRISME study by completing postal questionnaires, and 3224 participated in the follow-up in 2009. Content-related emotional demands were measured by a scale (scored 1 to 5) based on five work-content-related items, and exhaustion was measured with the general exhaustion scale from the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI) (scored 1 to 5). The cross-sectional and longitudinal associations with exhaustion were analysed in the same model and adjusted for effects of potential confounders. Effect modifications were examined separately for self-reported emotional enrichment, meaningful work, job control, social support at work and quantitative demands.

Results

Exhaustion increased with increasing emotional demands, both cross-sectionally and longitudinally. However, although statistically significant, the effect was small. In the longitudinal analysis, a one unit increase in emotional demands was associated with a 0.03 unit (95% CI: 0.01–0.06) increase in exhaustion. We found statistically significant effect modification for three of six potentially modifying work characteristics. The effect of emotional demands on exhaustion was lower for participants with high levels of emotional enrichment (cross-sectionally and longitudinally), high levels of meaningful work (longitudinally), and higher for high levels of quantitative demands (cross-sectionally).

Conclusions

Increasing content-related emotional demands were associated with increasing levels of exhaustion, cross-sectionally and longitudinally. This effect was reduced if the work was experienced as emotionally enriching and meaningful.

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Funding

The PRISME study was supported by an unrestricted research grant from the Danish Working Environment Research Fund and Lundbeck A/S.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Bispebjerg University Hospital, Bispebjerg Bakke 23, 2400, Copenhagen NV, Denmark

    Marianne Agergaard Vammen, Sigurd Mikkelsen, Jens Peter Bonde & Jane Frølund Thomsen

  2. Department of Public Health, University of Copenhagen, Øster Farimagsgade 5, Postboks 2099, P.O.Box 2099, 1014, Copenhagen K, Denmark

    Julie Lyng Forman, Åse Marie Hansen & Matias Brødsgaard Grynderup

  3. Department of Clinical Medicine, Occupational Medicine, Danish Ramazzini Centre, Aarhus University Hospital, Nørrebrogade 44, 8000, Aarhus C, Denmark

    Henrik Kolstad

  4. Research Unit of Clinical Epidemiology, Institute of Clinical Research, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark

    Linda Kaerlev

  5. Center for Clinical Epidemiology, Odense University Hospital, Campusvej 55, 5230, Odense M, Denmark

    Linda Kaerlev

  6. Department of Public Health, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark

    Reiner Rugulies

  7. National Research Centre for the Working Environment, Lersø Parkallé 105, 2100, Copenhagen O, Denmark

    Reiner Rugulies

  8. Department of Psychology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark

    Reiner Rugulies

Authors
  1. Marianne Agergaard Vammen
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  2. Sigurd Mikkelsen
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  3. Julie Lyng Forman
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  4. Åse Marie Hansen
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  6. Matias Brødsgaard Grynderup
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  7. Henrik Kolstad
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  8. Linda Kaerlev
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  10. Jane Frølund Thomsen
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jane Frølund Thomsen.

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Conflict of interest

Marianne Agergaard Vammen was funded by Lundbeck A/S. Lundbeck A/S was not involved in any parts of the study or the preparation of the article. Jane Frølund Thomsen is appointed by the Danish National Board of Health to the Committee of Occupational Diseases, an advisory committee for the Danish National Board of Industrial Injuries.

Ethical standards

The study protocol was approved by the local Scientific Ethical Committee (RRS 2006-1028) and the Danish Protection Agency (2009-41-3215). Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study. All procedures performed in the study were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Vammen, M.A., Mikkelsen, S., Forman, J.L. et al. Emotional demands and exhaustion: cross-sectional and longitudinal associations in a cohort of Danish public sector employees. Int Arch Occup Environ Health 92, 639–650 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00420-018-01398-w

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00420-018-01398-w

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