Publications and Research

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2021

Abstract

In view of the profound problems affecting burnout’s conceptualization and measurement and because there is now robust evidence that burnout is a depressive condition, we recommend that occupational health specialists shift their focus from burnout to depression. A measure of job-related depressive symptoms, the Occupational Depression Inventory (ODI), has recently been developed. Advantageously, the ODI resolves many of the persistent problems linked to burnout while being consistent with burnout researchers’ original aim of assessing a work-attributed form of distress. The ODI includes a diagnostic algorithm that allows investigators to estimate the prevalence of depressive disorders that individuals specifically ascribe to their job. Importantly, by assessing symptoms such as suicidal ideation, the ODI enables researchers medical attention. The evidence available indicates that the ODI has excellent psychometric and structural properties, which is not the case for the Maslach Burnout Inventory, the most widely used measure of burnout.

Comments

Bianchi, R., & Schonfeld, I. S. (2021). The Occupational Depression Inventory-A solution for breaking the impasse of burnout measurement. JAMA Surgery, 156(6), 589–590. https://doi:10.1001/jamasurg.2021.0018

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