Investigating Academic Burnout in Undergraduate Physics Experiences - PowerPoint Presentation

1. Investigating Academic Burnout in Undergraduate Physics Experiences Harshini Sunil, Bethany R. WilcoxDepartment of Physics, University of Colorado BoulderResearch QuestionWe aim to better understand the challenges and difficulties encountered by students in physics courses at the university level to determine how burnout affects them. IntroductionBurnout - a state of excessive or prolonged stress that causes emotional, physical, and/or mental exhaustionBurnout can lead to [1] :lower commitmentreduced productivity low moralelower attendancelower human consideration.Background Oldenburg Burnout Inventory (OLBI) [2] to study academic burnout and this instrument served as a starting point in designing the interviews and survey.5 stages of burnout is a useful tool to categorize feelings of burnout into a measurable scale:1. Honeymoon Phase2. Onset of Stress Phase3. Chronic Stress Phase4. Burnout Phase5. Habitual Burnout phaseMethods (Phase 1 - Interviews)Interviews (7 students): Open-ended questions to elicit information on undergraduate students’ experiencesAnalyzed using codes and anti-codesMethods (Phase 2 - Surveys)Surveys (24 students): Informed from analysis of interview responses 5-point Likert scale on how often they experienced 18 main symptoms of burnoutResults and DiscussionAcknowledgmentsThanks to the PER group at the University of Colorado Boulder for their support.References[1] Carmen Vizoso, Olga Arias-Gundin, and Celestino Rodriguez, “Exploring coping and optimism as predictors of academic burnout and performance among university students,” Educational Psychology 39, 768–783 (2019).[2] Dorota Reis, Despoina Xanthopoulou, and Ioannis Tsaousis, “Measuring job and academic burnout with the oldenburg burnout inventory (olbi): Factorial invariance across samples and countries,” Burnout Research 2, 8–18 (2015)Codes that Indicate BurnoutDescriptionStressMental or emotional strain from the demand of responsibilitiesOverwhelmedHaving too much schoolwork or too much responsibilityAnxietyFeelings of fear, dread or uneasinessExam stressStress correlating directly related to exams or exam prepMental healthComments regarding mental health issuesIsolationFeelings of isolation from othersGeneral UnhappinessFeelings that do not fall under other codes, but have negative connotationsAnti-codes that limit or lessen burnoutDescriptionTimeGetting things done on time, not procrastinating, setting aside time for personal care Social/class supportHaving friends and/or peers to sit with, community in the classroom, social support systemPassionFeelings of passion, excitement, enthusiasm for the materialContentednessNeutral feelings about the material, a state of peace, feelings of contentAlways/ FrequentlyOccasionallyRarely/ NeverNone / Honeymoon (n=3)1.3357.2Onset of Stress (n=9)2.113.211.89Chronic Stress (n=7)4.4335.57Burnout (n=2)7.54.56.5Habitual Burnout (n=6)11.173.674Burnout PhaseN codesN anti-codesStudent 1Chronic stress (4)180Student 2 Onset of stress (3)26Student 3Onset of stress (3)55Student 4Burnout (4)81Student 5Habitual burnout (5)52Student 6Honeymoon (1)215Student 7Honeymoon (1)26Interview responses are categorized into a priori codes that indicate burnout symptoms or feelings. Codes and anti-codes were created as a result.Frequency of Codes and Anti-codes experienced by the 7 participants in the interview study and their corresponding stage of burnout. Students with higher amounts of N codes to anti-codes tend to have higher levels of burnout.We categorized the frequency of the symptoms experienced by the survey, listed in Table 1, and created a table showing how symptoms relate to the 5 stages of burnout. Feeling illHeadachesInsomniaStomach or bowel problemsMuscle tensionFatigueBack or neck painPerspirationHigh blood pressureDepressionNot enough restNo time for self/othersDeteriorating healthFearful of failingProblems focusingLoosing motivationStress/ anxiousBehind with responsibilityNever69610925614611111003Rarely833337555435744336Occasionally462323241463714633Frequently2153244303612679756Always 1252555314500835103Table 1: Frequency of the main 18 symptoms of burnout experienced by the 24 survey participants. ConclusionCreated links between the 5 phases of burnout and the frequency of burnout symptoms experienced by students A higher frequency of symptoms often corresponds with higher burnout levelsAble to better identify how burnout presents in undergraduate physics students Physics students have varying levels of burnout and those with higher levels are impacted emotionally, mentally, and physically, lending credence to the concern that many students are experiencing burnoutRegardless of burnout levels, students are tired, drained and not getting enough restPlease scan the QR code to access the paper and access more resources on burnout!