Validating the reduced burnout scale and sequencing of burnout ☆ Brian N. Rutherford a,1 , C. David Shepherd b,2 , Armen Tashchian a,2 a Marketing and Professional Sales, Kennesaw State University, 1000 Chastain Road, Kennesaw, GA 30144, USA b Interim Chair, Department of Marketing and Logistics, Georgia Southern University, P.O. Box 8154, COBA 2204A, Statesboro, GA 30460, USA abstract article info Article history: Received 14 August 2012 Received in revised form 14 May 2014 Accepted 16 May 2014 Available online xxxx Keywords: Burnout Job performance Maslach Emotional exhaustion Given the renewed interest in salesperson burnout, three research objectives that are key to uniting and moving the sales literature forward are addressed. Specifically, sequencing issues with the ordering of the burnout facets are addressed. Then, facets of burnout as both direct and indirect predictors of job performance are examined. Finally, the study places the burnout facets within a nomological network. Findings suggest that emotional exhaustion is a direct predictor of job performance, whereas, depersonalization and personal accomplishment have an indirect affect on job performance. © 2014 Published by Elsevier Inc. 1. Introduction and study development Since their seminal research in the conceptualization of burnout and the development of the tripartite Maslach burnout inventory (Maslach & Jackson, 1981), interest in using the burnout concept continues in the marketing and sales literature (e.g. Hollet-Haudebert, Mulki, & Fournier, 2011; Shepherd, Tashchian, & Ridnour, 2011). Within the original Maslach burnout inventory (MBI), three distinct facets of burnout had emerged (emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and personal accomplishment). However, Hollet-Haudebert et al. (2011) highlight that research often fails to examine two of the three facets. Specifically, sales research primarily focuses on emotional exhaustion (e.g. Mulki, Jaramillo, & Locander, 2006; Rutherford, Boles, Hamwi, Madupalli, & Rutherford, 2009) despite the impact that depersonalization and personal accomplishment may have on the burnout process. Emotional exhaustion is the feeling of being emotionally overextended and exhausted by one's work which is caused by excessive psychological and emotional demands (Maslach & Jackson, 1981, 1986). Depersonaliza- tion is defined as detachment from the organization and its clients (Cordes & Dougherty, 1993). Finally, personal accomplishment is the feeling of competence and successful achievement in one's work with people (Maslach & Jackson, 1981). However, some researchers examine personal accomplishment as reduced personal accomplishment (Singh, Goolsby, & Rhoads, 1994) or diminished personal accomplishment (Lewin & Sager, 2007). This approach allows burnout to only contain negative aspects versus one positive and two negative facts. While the facets of burnout are unique and distinct, sales researchers know surprisingly little about burnout given issues relating to its measurement and sequencing. The purpose of this study is to begin to unify sales research pertaining to the sequencing and the impact of burnout. To accomplish the purpose of this study, three research objectives are developed and examined. The first objective pertains to sequencing issues with the burnout process. Lewin and Sager (2007) examine three alternative models of burnout within a sales context. The Maslach and Jackson model (1981), hereafter referred to as the Maslach model, receives substantial support and use in health care settings (e.g. Leiter, 1988; Leiter & Maslach, 1988). This model asserts that emotional exhaustion predicts depersonalization which, in turn, predicts personal accomplishment. Golembiewski and Munzenrider (1981, 1984), hereafter referred to as the Golembiewski model, propose an alternative to the Maslach model. This model proposes that burnout progresses from depersonali- zation to diminished personal accomplishment, to emotional exhaus- tion. This conceptualization of the burnout process receives support in public service worker research (e.g. Burke & Deszca, 1986; Burke & Greenglass, 1989; Rountree, 1984). Finally, Lewin and Sager (2007) propose a third model specific to a sales context—hereafter referred to as the Lewin model. The Lewin model, asserts that: diminished personal accomplishment is an antecedent of both depersonalization and emotional exhaustion and that depersonalization is an antecedent of emotional exhaustion. While Journal of Business Research xxx (2014) xxx–xxx ☆ All authors contributed equally to the manuscript. E-mail addresses: Bruther1@kennesaw.edu (B.N. Rutherford), dshepherd@georgiasouthern.edu (C.D. Shepherd), Atashchi@kennesaw.edu (A. Tashchian). 1 Tel.: +1 770 794 7708; fax: +1 678 797 246. 2 Tel.: +1 912 478 1961; fax: +1 912 478 1523. JBR-08093; No of Pages 7 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2014.05.006 0148-2963/© 2014 Published by Elsevier Inc. Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Journal of Business Research Please cite this article as: Rutherford, B.N., et al., Validating the reduced burnout scale and sequencing of burnout, Journal of Business Research (2014), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2014.05.006