Using Psychodrama to Reduce ''Burnout'' or Role Fatigue in the Helping Professions

Abstract

Psychodrama has great potential for relief of burnout, or role fatigue, in the helping professions. It is useful for prevention and for remediation since it is an effective intervention strategy at all stages of the burnout cycle. Psychodrama provides a promising structure for the staff support groups which researchers of burnout agree are essential to its control. It has the advantage of being adaptable for role training, as well as being a highly supportive method of group psychotherapy. When presented as a means of improving job-handling skills, it is less likely to encounter staff resistance than a more unstructured group therapy method. The author describes her
experience conducting a staff support group, using psychodrama, for counselors working in a county jail. She also suggests psychodramatic procedures which she has found particularly useful for reducing staff burnout.