JOB STRESS AND BURNOUT AMONG SOCIAL SERVICE WORKERS: THEORETICAL APPROACH

Abstract

Social services constitute both a practice-oriented profession and an academic discipline aimed at facilitating human change, development, empowerment, and liberation. It is fundamentally based on concepts such as human rights, social justice, and respect for diversity. The field offers a wide range of employment opportunities, including institutions affiliated with the Ministry of Justice (such as prisons), nursing homes under the Ministry of Family and Social Policies, and private sector organizations. Social services require professionals to work under various adverse (disadvantaged) conditions and involve significant physical effort, making it an inherently demanding field. Consequently, these challenges lead to job stress and burnout. Such stress and burnout become factors that negatively impact employees' professional competence, productivity, and quality of life. Low wages, demanding and care-intensive responsibilities, high workload, and long working hours contribute to increased stress and burnout. Furthermore, the workforce and performance of employees decline in parallel with these negative conditions. This study examines the adverse conditions encountered in the field of social services, incorporating relevant concepts and literature-based assessments of these challenges. Within the framework of burnout theories and studies on stress management, it explores the sources of job stress in the social service profession, the individual and institutional impacts of burnout, and coping strategies. Ultimately, this study aims to contribute to the academic literature and serve as a guide for both professionals and administrators in the field of social services.