This review is an example of a research review.
Rupert, P. A., Dorociak, K. E. (2019). Self-care, stress, and well-being among practicing psychologists. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 50(5), 343-350. doi:10.1037/pro0000251
The importance of self-care has been highlighted over the past several decades and within the field of education more recently. The purpose of this study was to gain a greater understanding of the role of self-care and with the goal of examining how its importance influences well-being outcomes. The author’s sought to see if self-care acts as a moderator to protect against the aversive effects of stress on well-being.
A paper-and-pencil survey was sent to 1,500 randomly selected licensed psychologists in Illinois. Only 29.5% of the surveys were returned and the data from 422 participants was used in the study. The sample lacked diversity and was predominately white (87.2%), female (69.9%), and involved in a committed relationship (76%). Several measures were used to measure self-care, perceived stress, life satisfaction, and career burnout. Mainly, to measure self-care the authors used, Self-Care Assessment for Psychologists (SCAP), a 21-item self-report scale to look at the five factors of self-care: professional support, professional development, life balance, cognitive awareness, daily balance.
Rupert and Dorociak found that lower levels of burnout and greater life satisfaction are related to higher scores on the five factors. Participants with higher cognitive awareness were less likely to perceive stress as related to personal achievement. High cognitive awareness may help maintain positive feelings about work during stressful times. Further, life balance strategies were the most significant predictor of greater life satisfaction and lower perceived stress, as well as a significant predictor of lower emotional exhaustion. More engagement in self-care activities were related to a reduction in bad outcomes and increased good outcomes, except in professional support. Overall, this suggests that self-care can be a moderator to protect against the aversive effects of stress on an individual’s well-being.
The author’s perspective is that ongoing, preventive self-care is essential for decreasing the risk of burnout and promoting life satisfaction. to prevent burnout as a student, I need to participate in regular self-care. Despite struggling to balance homework, a job, and my practicum, in order to meet my academic goals. By seeking professional support from my professors and working on a daily balance, I will be able to achieve my goals of earning all As and attending weekly seminars to learn about research in the field. Additionally, my first semester of college, I took an introduction to teaching course and on the first day of class the instructor said to never sit in the teacher’s lounge during lunch. I found this alarming because I thought that sitting in the lounge would allow me to become friends with my colleagues. However, he explained how emotionally exhausting it was to hear the same teachers complain about the same “problem” students day after day. The article describes how professional support yields mixed results about burnout. While professional support can increase one’s sense of personal accomplishment, others can find professional support emotionally exhausting when discussing work frustrations. After spending more time in the schools, I can relate to Mr. Smith’s frustrations. However, when I become a practicing school psychologist, I feel that I can help establish a climate of respect for all students and staff inside and outside of the teacher’s lounge.
