Social Support, Home/Work Stress, and Burnout: Who can Help?

Abstract

This study considered the nature of home/work stress and investigated the role of social support from both intra- and extraorganizational sources in reducing that stress and buffering its impact on burnout. Specifically, demographic factors affecting perceptions of home/work stress and the impact of various sources of social support were examined. Data were collected from nursing-home nurses and analyzed using regression techniques. Results suggested that participants with children and those cohabiting with their partners were particularly vulnerable to home/work stress. Results also indicated that different sources of social support worked in unique ways to relieve the strain of home/work stress. Implications of this research for theory on social support are considered, along with the pragmatic suggestions for using study results in dealing with home/work stress.