Journal of Athletic Training 2000;35(2):139-144 C by the National Athletic Trainers' Association, Inc www.joumalofathletictraining.org An Examination of Stress and Burnout in Certified Athletic Trainers at Division I-A Universities Amy E. Hendrix, MA, ATC*; Edmund 0. Acevedo, PhD, FACSMt; Edward Hebert, PhD* *Southeastern Louisiana University, Hammond, LA; tUniversity of Mississippi, University, MS Objective: A growing body of knowledge indicates that too much stress can negatively influence psychological and phys- ical health. A model proposed by Smith to explore personal and situational variables, stress appraisal, and burnout has led to significant understanding of burnout of individuals working in service professions. We examined the relationship of hardi- ness, social support, and work-related issues relevant to ath- letic trainers to perceived stress and the relationship of per- ceived stress to burnout. Design and Seffing: Correlational analyses were performed to examine the relationships predicted by Smith's model. In addition, we conducted stepwise multiple regression analyses to assess the relative contributions of the personal and situa- tional variables to perceived stress and to examine the relative impact of perceived stress on 3 burnout factors (emotional exhaustion, personal accomplishment, and depersonalization). Subjects: One hundred eighteen certified athletic trainers working in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I-A intercollegiate settings that maintain a football program. H igh levels of perceived stress and burnout have been reported in a variety of service professions, including social workers, physicians, psychologists, police offic- ers, lawyers, and counselors. 1-3 Stress and burnout are con- structs that can have a negative influence on those working in human service or helping professions. The detrimental effects of stress and burnout have been documented,47 and the importance of managing stress has been established by the medical community. However, the limited literature on burnout in sport has focused on coaches and sport officials1-3 and coach-teachers.89 Burnout has been defined as a reaction to chronic stress that involves negative interactions between environmental and personal characteristics. 10-12 Burnout has also been character- ized as a chronic condition that develops when one is working too hard for too long in a high-pressure situation.5 Further- more, burnout is conceptualized as uncontrollable, negatively perceived events occurring over a period of time that lead to 3 negative psychological responses: depersonalization, emo- tional exhaustion, and a lack of personal accomplishment.8"3 Address correspondence to Edmund 0. Acevedo, PhD, FACSM, De- partment of Exercise Science & Leisure Management, University of Mississippi, PO Box 1848, University, MS 38677-1848. E-mail address: eacevedo@olemiss.edu Measurements: We assessed personal and situational vari- ables using the Hardiness Test, the Social Support Question- naire, and the Athletic Training Issues Survey, adapted for this study. The Perceived Stress Scale was used to assess stress appraisal, and the Maslach Burnout Inventory was used to assess 3 dimensions of burnout. Results: Our results were in support of Smith's theoretical model of stress and burnout. Athletic trainers who scored lower on hardiness and social support and higher on athletic training issues tended to have higher levels of perceived stress. Fur- thermore, higher perceived stress scores were related to higher emotional exhaustion and depersonalization and lower levels of personal accomplishment. Conclusions: Our findings examining burnout in Division I athletic trainers were similar to those of other studies investi- gating coaches and coach-teachers and in support of Smith's theoretical model of stress and burnout. Key Words: hardiness, social support, athletic training is- sues, sport psychology Few theoretical models of burnout have been proposed and investigated. Additionally, theories by Cherniss14 and Golem- biewski and Munzenrider'5 have been criticized for theoretical and practical limitations that have prevented empirical progress from continuing.14-17 More recently, Smith's'2 proposed the- oretical framework has received substantial support and has been used as the basis for much of the contemporary research on burnout.8-9 Smith's'2 model asserts that personal and situational char- acteristics influence perception of stress, and, in turn, percep- tion of stress influences the level of burnout.8"18 Personal and situational characteristics such as hardiness, social support, motivation, and work-related issues compose the first compo- nent of the model. The second component reflects the cognitive stress appraisal of individuals, and the third component repre- sents the coping strategies employed by individuals (ie, level of burnout). With poor coping skills, an individual is at higher risk for burnout and the deleterious consequences that accom- pany the phenomenon. Research with coaches and coach- teachers8-9 has demonstrated significant relationships between the personal and situational variables and stress appraisal and between stress appraisal and dimensions of burnout. In addi- tion, this research has demonstrated distinctions among pro- fessions.89 Journal of Athletic Training 139