Compassion Fatigue, Burnout, and the Emotional Labor of Educational Workers

Abstract

This article presents the key findings of a two-year research study on the scope and lived experience of the three interwoven phenomena of emotional labor, compassion fatigue, and burnout by educational workers in Alberta, Canada. The findings suggest that these occupational mental health hazards are widespread among Alberta’s educational workers and that interventions should be implemented across the education system to ensure optimal wellness in the workplace. Also presented is the conceptual model that emerged from inductive analysis of the research data for the compassion continuum.