Psychische Gesundheit und Burnout-Risiko bei weiblichen Beschäftigten verschiedener Berufsgruppen mit hohem Anteil an Interaktionsarbeit

Interaction work is characteristic of service, health and social professions in which the exchange with customers, patients, clients or students plays a central role. It covers a broad spectrum of activities that require both emotional and cognitive skills and often involve dealing with emotional work, such as managing one’s own feelings and influencing the emotions of others as part of the professional role. The aim of the study was to examine and comparatively analyze the mental health and risk of burnout of employees in various occupational groups with a high proportion of interaction work. A total of 309 women from 3 different occupational groups (dialogical interactive employment for educators and medical assistants and pure interaction work for bank clerks) with an average age of 43.1 ± 11.5 years took part in the study. Mental health was examined using the general health questionnaire (GHQ-12) and the burnout risk using the Maslach burnout inventory (MBI). The total value of the GHQ was 12.2 ± 5.4 points, although no statistically significant difference could be found between the interaction professions in this parameter. Significant differences were only found between kindergarten teachers and medical assistants in the MBI dimension “performance” (p = 0.041), with kindergarten teachers reporting lower performance. No other differences were found between the occupational groups. Overall, there was a high risk of burnout of 4% in the total sample, which roughly corresponds to the lifetime prevalence in Germany. The lack of significant differences in burnout and psychological impairments between interaction work in the service sector and in health and social professions can be explained by similar work requirements, particularly with respect to the emotional work and social interaction that are central in both areas. The constant need to deal with the emotions of others and regulate one’s own feelings can lead to emotional exhaustion, regardless of the type of interaction work. Social support at work and effective coping strategies may be similar in the occupational groups studied and thus mitigate the effects of interaction work on mental health.