[Burnout in the light of cognitive emotion regulation among Hungarian physicians].

Introduction: Burnout is a group of mental, emotional, and physical symptoms that occur as a result of chronic stress and emotional strain. The literature on burnout is extensive, and external and intrapsychic causal factors became a popular area of research. Despite the growing number of studies, the relationship between cognitive emotion regulation and burnout among individuals having helping professions, primarily physicians, is an area of little research. Only a few studies address this topic, which showed that there is a positive interaction between maladaptive techniques of cognitive emotion regulation and burnout. Objective: Our aim is to explore which factors of cognitive emotion regulation are associated with burnout. Method: We performed a quantitative cross-sectional study using an online questionnaire method, with the participation of Hungarian physicians operating for at least one year in their profession. The Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (CERQ) was used to measure cognitive emotion regulation, and the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) was used to examine burnout. Pearson correlation as well as multiple linear regression analysis were used. Results: Catastrophizing (β = 0.351; p<0,001), rumination (β = 0.191; p = 0.037) and positive refocusing (β = –0.23; p = 0.009) significantly predict a higher level of emotional exhaustion, reverse relationship with positive refocusing. Self-blame (β = 0.263; p = 0.002) and positive refocusing (β = –0.406; p<0.001) significantly predict a lower level of personal effectiveness, reverse relationship with positive refocusing. Self-blame (β = 0.41; p<0.001), blaming others (β = 0.282; p = 0.001) and planning (β = –0.307; p<0.001) significantly predict a higher level of depersonalization, reverse relationship with planning. Burnout factors have a positive relationship with maladaptive cognitive emotion regulation methods, and they show a significantly negative relationship with adaptive emotion regulation techniques. Conclusion: Our study has important practical significance, drawing attention to the fact that it is essential to take these intrapsychic factors into account in the prevention and treatment of burnout, and to emphasize the development of adaptive cognitive emotion regulation in a profession where emotional stress is increased in everyday work. Orv Hetil. 2022; 163(8): 319–327.