At the beginning of a burnout diagnosis, there should be a comprehensive, physical and laboratory chemical examination to rule out physical causes.
The symptoms of burnout syndrome, such as fatigue or exhaustion, can also occur with many diseases or metabolic disorders, such as tumor diseases, vitamin, electrolyte, hormone disorders, sleep deficiency, inflammation, infection, autoimmune diseases, liver and kidney disorders, etc.
MBI – Maslach Burnout Inventory
The most common diagnostic tool for assessing burnout is the Maslach Burnout Inventory, which was developed by Maslach & Jackson in 1981. With the help of the questions of the MBI, the 3 dimensions of emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and reduced personal performance are recorded.With the seven-point answer options (from 0=never to 6=daily), the respondents are to indicate the frequency of occurrence of the respective events. The questionnaire is not intended to calculate the overall burnout score, but to capture the individual dimensions.
Below are some examples of the MBI.
Emotional exhaustion
- I feel drained by my work.
- At the end of a working day, I feel done.
- Working with people all day is really a strain for me.
Depersonalization
- I have become more jaded towards people since I started doing this work.
- I don’t really care what happens to some clients.
- I worry that my work makes me less compassionate.
Performance satisfaction
- I successfully deal with the problems of my clients.
- I feel very energetic.
- With it is easy to create a relaxed atmosphere.
TM – Tedium Measure
This so-called weariness scale records in 21 questions the frequency of certain symptoms from 1 (never) to 7 (always).
Below are some sample statements of the TM.
- I feel depressed.
- I’m having a good day.
- I am emotionally exhausted.
- I am happy.
- I am “burnt out”.
- I feel trapped.
- I feel hopeless.
- I am optimistic.
- I feel energetic.
- I am afraid.
