EXPLORING HOW SELF-EFFICACY, WORKLOAD, AND PARENT ENGAGEMENT INTERRELATE WITH BURNOUT AMONG CHILD THERAPISTS

The National Healthcare Quality and Disparities report in 2022 revealed that almost a quarter of children ages 3-17 in the United States have a mental health related disorder. Because of this, well-equipped child therapists are needed to carry out the responsibility of providing services to support this population. However, several systematic reviews have noted the prevalence of burnout among child therapists, possibly hindering quality care (Acker, 2010; Simionato & Simpson, 2018). Because of this, investigators have sought to understand burnout and its effect on child therapists. Many have noted the risks of professional burnout (Adams et al. 2006; Chen et al. 2019; Paris et al. 2010; Sanchez-Moreno et al., 2015), however there is limited research specific to burnout among child therapists. This study examined how self-efficacy, workload, and parent engagement interrelate with burnout among child therapists. A multiple regression analysis was employed to investigate the influence of self-efficacy, workload, and parent engagement as predictors of child therapist burnout (N=537). The findings indicated that the predictor variables significantly explained 63% of the overall variance. In addition, this study revealed that self-efficacy served as a moderator for parent engagement and workload; and parent engagement and burnout. Additionally, average or high self-efficacy moderated the connection between workload and burnout; and parent engagement, workload, and burnout. Lastly, considerations, implications, and recommendations for future research are reviewed.