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ORIGINAL RESEARCH

Survey: The prevalence of parental burnout in parents of alert, fussy children

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KEY TAKEAWAYS

  • I conducted a survey of parents of alert, fussy young children (N=294) and asked about symptoms of burnout.

  • While burnout is estimated to happen in about 9% of parents in the U.S., this survey found a rate of more than 75%.

  • 40% of these scored in an "extreme" range.

BACKGROUND

​Burnout is more than a feeling of fatigue or frustration. “Burnout” refers to a chronic state of energy depletion where requirements far outstrip available energy reserves (Mikolajczak & Roskam, 2019). Not only can burnout sap the joy right out of parenting, but because the demands don’t let up or go away, it can worsen over time. When this happens, parents may emotionally withdraw as a sort of self-protection. Burnout is also known to result in harsher, more inconsistent parenting strategies (Paula et al., 2021) and parenting on “auto-pilot.” In extreme situations, it can lead to substance use (self-medicating), “escape ideation” (running away, suicidality), and depression.

 

In the U.S. (and other countries with an individualistic orientation), the prevalence of parental burnout is about 9% (Roskam et al., 2021). Rates are significantly higher in parents of children with medical conditions (Lindström et al., 2010) and they were also higher during the COVID-19 pandemic (Griffiths et al., 2022).

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If burnout is worrisome in parents in general, what about parents who have alert, intense, sensitive, non-sleeping children? How many of these parents are burned out?

HOW THIS RESEARCH WAS DONE

I conducted a needs assessment survey in two large (100K+ total) Facebook groups dedicated to parents of these types of children: The Fussy Baby Site Support Group and the Spirited Child Support Group. After asking some questions about their preferences for the group, I asked five questions that comprise the Brief Parental Burnout Scale (Aunola et al., 2022). A score of ≥2 on this scale is considered "burnout." I received 294 total responses from parents of children (0 to 6 years).

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RESULTS

  • Across the group, more than 75% scored in the range of full burnout (≥2 points/10). This is compared to 9% in the general U.S. population of parents. (Note that the 4-5 month group had almost 90% reporting burnout.)

  • Almost 40% of those in burnout scored in the "extreme" range (≥7 on a 10-point scale).

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  • Given the serious mental and physical health consequences of burnout, these numbers, while not surprising are alarming.

  • More research is needed on burnout in this group.

  • For ideas for how to prevent or improve burnout symptoms, check my blog article.

References

 

Aunola, K., Sorkkila, M., Tolvanen, A., Tassoul, A., Mikolajczak, M., & Roskam, I. (2021). Development and validation of the Brief Parental Burnout Scale (BPBS). Psychological Assessment, 33(11), 1125–1137. https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0001064

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Lindström, C., Åman, J., & Norberg, A. L. (2010). Increased prevalence of burnout symptoms in parents of chronically ill children. Acta Paediatrica, 99(3), 427-432.

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Mikolajczak, M., Raes, M. E., Avalosse, H., & Roskam, I. (2018). Exhausted parents: Sociodemographic, child-related, parent-related, parenting and family-functioning correlates of parental burnout. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 27, 602-614.

 

Mikolajczak, M., & Roskam, I. (2018). A theoretical and clinical framework for parental burnout: The balance between risks and resources (BR2). Frontiers in Psychology, 9, 886. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.00886

 

Paula, A. J. D., Condeles, P. C., Moreno, A. L., Ferreira, M. B. G., Fonseca, L. M. M., & Ruiz, M. T. (2021). Parental burnout: A scoping review. Revista Brasileira de Enfermagem, 75, e20210203.

 

Roskam, I., Aguiar, J., Akgun, E., Arena, A. F., Arikan, G., Aunola, K., Besson, E., Beyers, W., Boujut, E., Brianda, M. E., Brytek-Matera, A., Budak, A. M., Carbonneau, N., César, F., Chen, B.-B., Dorard, G., Dos Santos Elias, L. C., Dunsmuir, S., Egorova, N., … Mikolajczak, M. (2024). Three reasons why parental burnout is more prevalent in individualistic countries: A mediation study in 36 countries. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 59(4), 681–694. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-023-02487-z

 

Roskam, I., Aguiar, J., Akgun, E., Arikan, G., Artavia, M., Avalosse, H., Aunola, K., Bader, M., Bahati, C., Barham, E. J., Besson, E., Beyers, W., Boujut, E., Brianda, M. E., Brytek-Matera, A., Carbonneau, N., César, F., Chen, B.-B., Dorard, G., … Mikolajczak, M. (2021). Parental burnout around the globe: A 42-country study. Affective Science, 2(1), 58–79. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42761-020-00028-4

 

Roskam, I., & Mikolajczak, M. (2023). Parental burnout in the context of special needs, adoption, and single parenthood. Children (Basel, Switzerland), 10(7). https://doi.org/10.3390/children10071131

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