Franz, B; Wang, T and Issa, R R (2023) Exploration of burnout in early-career construction management professionals in the USA. Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, 30(3), pp. 1061-1079. ISSN 0969-9988
Abstract
Purpose: Construction managers face many work-related stressors induced by unrealistic schedule expectations, tight budgets, and long hours. Over time, these stressors can result in both mental and physical exhaustion, a condition referred to as burnout. Early-career managers are a key worker demographic, as they represent the near-term future of the construction industry, yet they have a high risk for burnout. The purpose of this study is to explore the prevalence of burnout in new construction managers, and to identify which individual or work-related factors are associated with feelings of burnout. Design/methodology/approach: Using the Maslach Burnout Inventory General Survey (MBI-GS), data from 146 early-career professionals (less than 10 years of experience) with construction management degrees in the USA were collected and analyzed using correlational and best subset regression techniques. Findings: The results show that the early-career demographic in the USA experiences both the Emotional Exhaustion and Cynicism dimensions of burnout at comparable levels to prior studies with more mid-to-late career respondents. However, the Professional Efficacy dimension was significantly higher in early-career professionals than any other sample. No individual factors, such as gender, marital status, or number of children, were predictive of any dimension of burnout. Instead, only work-related factors including co-worker friendliness, opportunities for personal development and promotion, and the ability to control the work pacing were strongly associated with one or more dimensions of burnout. Originality/value: This study is the first to explore burnout in the key early-career demographic for construction managers in the United States construction industry. This work provides evidence that organizational policies and culture have a greater efficacy in alleviating burnout in this demographic, when compared to the work–life balance of the individual.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | emotional exhaustion; millennial generation; project management; stress; workforce |
| Index terms: | personal development, construction industry, dimension, project management, inventory, promotion, children, career, methodology, exploration, construction manager, evidence, manager, United States, stressors, burnout, face, survey |
| Subjects: | environmental resource management, psychology, health monitoring assessment and metrics, profession, evaluation and assessment methods, data collection methods, practitioner, health conditions and diseases, occupational health and safety management, demography, industry analysis, research methods, management, project management theory and practice, professional development, Geography, inventory management |
| Topics: | Urban Studies, Human Resources, Supply Chain Management, Organizational Design, Health and Safety, Geographical Context, Project Management, Research Practice, Information Management, Roles and Professions, Sustainability |
| Descriptive scope: | 5 PCTEA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here