Prevalence and predictors of burnout in Swiss farmers – Burnout in the context of interrelation of work and household

Farmer Burnout in Canada

“…Although different instruments were used, our findings are strikingly in-line with Reissig et al [19] who investigated burnout in farmers in Switzerland using the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory and reported 12% prevalence of burnout, with higher estimates among females (15%) than males (10.4%). Kallioniemi and colleagues also reported burnout symptoms being common amongst Finnish dairy farmers in a survey conducted in 2010 [8].…”

“…Thus, it is reasonable to consider that the demands associated with farming contribute to the high exhaustion scores observed here. Indeed, time pressure, long work days, and lack of free time were positively associated with burnout scores in Swiss farmers [19]. Financial stress was also associated with increased exhaustion scores in the present study, and this was greater when combined with dissatisfaction of support from friends and industry.…”

“…Hence, burnout in farmers not only poses personal risks to those affected, but could also have negative implications for farm productivity and business, and the on-going success of the agricultural sector. Published research on burnout in farmers is sparse, with reports only from France [17,18], Finland [8], and Switzerland [19].…”

“…The largest study of farmer burnout to date is that published by Reissig and colleagues, who investigated burnout in over 1300 farmers in Switzerland using the Cophenhagen Burnout Inventory [19]. Twelve percent of participants were characterized as having burnout.…”

“…Twelve percent of participants were characterized as having burnout. Numerous factors were reported to be associated with burnout, including interpersonal conflicts, financial stress, heavy workload, time pressure, lack of free time, and poor health [19]. A smaller study of 265 dairy farmers was conducted by Kallioniemi and colleagues in Finland [8].…”