Several studies show that loneliness is a common problem among students and that loneliness and experienced study stress appear to explain depressive symptoms. Loneliness can be defined as ‘the subjective experience of an unpleasant or unacceptable lack of (quality of) certain social relationships’. Together with the increase in studies regarding burnout symptoms among students, there is a growing interest in loneliness among students. The increase of both perceived performance pressure and burnout symptoms makes it plausible that performance pressure could be a demand that contributes to the development of burnout symptoms among students and therefore could be a predictor of burnout symptoms. The relationship between performance pressure and burnout symptoms is relevant to investigate.

The study found that the JD-R model contributed to the knowledge about burnout and engagement in university students, especially with regard to personal resources. This study showed that mediation effects of study demands and (personal) resources (such as emotional stability and belonging) with psychological flexibility were found. While the JD-R model finds its origin in workplace settings, the model has also shown to be valid in the educational setting according to a study by Robins et al (2015).

Burnout symptoms are a result of insufficient balance between experienced demands and resources. The model assumes that high demands lead to stress reactions and exhaustion, while having many resources (sources of energy), like rewards or social support, leads to higher productivity, which is a motivational process. The development of burnout is explained by Job Demands-Resources model for Burnout and Engagement (JD-R Model). Burnout symptoms among students are similar to burnout symptoms among professionals, they refer to feelings of exhaustion (because of high study demands), having a cynical and detached attitude toward one’s study and experiencing a reduced sense of accomplishment as a student. Indeed, research on burnout symptoms among students in higher education is upcoming, showing that burnout symptoms among students seem even more prevalent than among the working population. Although the concept of burnout has originally been defined in the context of work-related stress, the traditional concept and scope have recently been broadened to include study-related problems. This reaction consists of feeling exhausted, experiencing depersonalization, and feeling incompetent. īurnout refers to a state of psychological exhaustion and is originally known as a work-related phenomenon defined as ‘a psychological syndrome as reaction to chronic interpersonal stressors at work’. Over the past years, researchers have found that those students who report feelings of burnout are more likely to experience poor physical health and cardio-vascular disease, psychological distress such as depression and even suicidal ideation. Burnout symptoms often lead to students feeling less engaged in their studies, poor academic performance, study delay and drop-out. Accordingly, several studies have shown that experiencing burnout symptoms has become a common problem among students in higher education, with the reported prevalence ranging between 45 and 71%. Recent reports show an increase in perceived performance pressure among students leading to psychosocial problems, particularly burnout symptoms.

Perhaps stronger than previously, student life is about meeting high expectations: getting good grades, building a resume and a good career start next to a rich social life. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.Ĭompeting interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.įor many students, their time at university is stressful, marked with many new experiences, challenges and life events. Dopmeijer by the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO) under grant number 023.004.118. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.ĭata Availability: All relevant data are within the paper and its Supporting information files.įunding: Funding was provided to Jolien M. Received: Accepted: ApPublished: December 21, 2022Ĭopyright: © 2022 Dopmeijer et al. (2022) The role of performance pressure, loneliness and sense of belonging in predicting burnout symptoms in students in higher education. Citation: Dopmeijer JM, Schutgens CAE, Kappe FR, Gubbels N, Visscher TLS, Jongen EMM, et al.

Burnout depersonalization