Age and burnout syndrome in nursing professionals: moderating role of emotion-focused coping

This study examined whether the association between age and the three burnout dimensions (emotional exhaustion, depersonalisation and reduced personal accomplishment) depend on the extent of nursing professionals’ use of emotion-focused coping strategy. Participants were 283 nurses (Mage = 35 years, SD = 8.17, Range = 23–66 years) from a tertiary healthcare institution in south-eastern Nigeria. They completed self-report measures of relevant variables in paper and pencil form. Increased age was associated with reduced personal accomplishment for nurses with high emotion-focused coping, but not for those who were low or moderate in use of emotion-focused coping. Such moderation effects were not found for emotional exhaustion and depersonalisation. Findings clarify the conditions under which age may be associated with reduced sense of achievement at work among nursing professionals. The study adds to knowledge in combating burnout in nursing and could guide health managers in developing strategies that might prevent or ameliorate nurses’ burnout.