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Burnout Syndrome Among Catholic Clergy: A Systematic Review

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Abstract

Burnout syndrome implies exhaustion, loss of motivation, low performance, and absenteeism. Catholic clergy are not exempt. This systematic review compiles and analyzes evidence related to burnout in Catholic clergy and potential modulating variables. Following the PRISMA methodology, systematic searches in different scientific databases identified 17 studies, revealing that burnout is related to age, personality traits, and type of priesthood. No relation between burnout and social support, self-care, spiritual practice, or workload was detected. It is necessary to adapt conceptual models to the peculiarities of burnout among clergy, extending assessment strategies and introducing working and organizational perspectives in the analysis of modulating variables, and in the development of prevention and intervention programs.

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The authors declare that no funds, grants, or other support were received during the preparation of this manuscript.

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All authors contributed to the conception and design of the study. DPG and EGF performed material preparation, data collection, and analysis. DPG wrote the first draft of the manuscript, and authors commented on previous versions. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Damián Picornell-Gallar.

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Picornell-Gallar, D., González-Fraile, E. Burnout Syndrome Among Catholic Clergy: A Systematic Review. J Relig Health 63, 1830–1848 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-023-01883-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-023-01883-8

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