Managing Burnout in the Workplace

Book excerpt: Information professionals are under constant stress. Libraries are ushering in sweeping changes that involve the closing of branches and reference desks, wholesale dumping of print, disappearing space, and employment of non-professional staff to fill what have traditionally been the roles of librarians. Increasing workloads, constant interruptions, ceaseless change, continual downsizing, budget cuts, repetitive work, and the pressures of public services have caused burnout in many information professionals.Managing Burnout in the Workplace concentrates on the problem of burnout, what it is and how it differs from chronic stress, low morale, and depression. The book addresses burnout from psychological, legal, and human resources perspectives. Chapters also cover how burnout is defined, symptom recognition, managing and overcoming burnout, and how to avoid career derailment while coping with burnout. - Focuses on burnout in relation to information professionals and their work - Explores how burnout is identified and diagnosed and how it is measured in the workplace - Provides an overview of interdisciplinary research on burnout, incorporating studies from various areas