Discussion
The present study focused on the investigation of fatigue, social support and quality of life that characterizes social workers. Furthermore, the study aims to highlight the effect of demographic and occupational characteristics on the above factors. Based on the specific objectives, the research questions formulated were the following:
To what extent do social workers experience fatigue?
To what extent do social workers receive social support from those around them?
At what level is the quality of life of social workers?
Do demographic and occupational characteristics characteristics influence social workers' fatigue, social support and quality of life?
In particular, investigating the first research question, it was shown that the level of fatigue of the respondents is considered low. It is worth mentioning that there are no corresponding previous researches in our country, so that a comparison can be made between their results. However, taking into account the data from research conducted abroad, we find that there is no agreement between these researches and the specific finding of the present research.
More specifically, Johnson (43) argues that the rate of fatigue in the profession of social workers is greater than 70%. Also, an earlier survey of social workers working in Great Britain revealed that more than 96% considered that they worked under quite stressful situations (44). Maslach and Leiter (45) argue that fatigue in social workers can be a consequence of the large number of cases they are called to manage, the deficiencies presented in the working environment and the feeling of injustice that they themselves perceive. Symptoms of fatigue appear to be present in several contexts in which social workers work according to the findings of previous research. More specifically, it has been documented in social workers who work with children with disabilities (46). High rates of burnout among social workers working in settings dealing with abused children are related to the painful complexity of advocating for both the abused child and the abusive parent (47) and have serious effects on their mental health, such as anxiety, depression and other physical symptoms (35). Not surprisingly, as a result of fatigue, child protective services have unusually high turnover rates and reduced worker efficiency over time (48).
At the same time, the level of occurrence of negative symptoms is also low, with physical symptoms appearing more often than the rest, as can be seen in the second research question. This finding is in agreement with Davies (44) from whose research it was found that 58% of social workers showed physical symptoms of stress. It is worth mentioning that Peterson et al. (24) concluded that fatigue negatively affects the health and well-being of social workers and is associated with a number of pathological consequences, such as depression, anxiety, sleep disorders, memory impairment, neck pain and the back.
Recent research by Hollederer (49) on a sample of social workers working in Germany concluded that cognitive and emotional demands were greater for social workers compared to other professions. These emotional demands were related to the general state of health of the social workers. More specifically, 41% of them stated that they often felt emotionally exhausted during the last twelve months. A quarter of social workers complained of both frequent physical and emotional exhaustion in the past twelve months. Finally, their disease rate was disproportionately high.
In the third research question it became clear that the participants receive a high level of support from their surroundings, and more so from the "significant other" in their lives. Analyzing the relationships between the main scales of the research, it was observed that the increase in fatigue is identified with the increase in the level of occurrence of all symptoms, as well as the total level of occurrence of symptoms. Accordingly, the higher the level of fatigue, the less support participants seem to receive from their surroundings. In addition, it became clear that as the level at which respondents receive support from their environment increases, the level at which they present any symptom, as well as the overall level of symptom occurrence, decreases. The only exception observed is between the level of social dysfunction and the level of support from friends, variables which do not show any statistically significant interaction.
It is worth mentioning that these findings agree with earlier research. More specifically, Håvard (50) found that social workers have a need for recognition and understanding from their colleagues and managers, which affects their emotional state. Also, it has been shown that in order to be able to provide their services, social workers need to feel both informal and formal support as well as supervision of their work. Earlier research on social workers and the social support they receive came to similar findings. More specifically, the special emotional value that support from colleagues and managers has in combating work stress (51). Urdang (52) found that it additionally reduces stress and possibly burnout.
Qiao (53) conducting a questionnaire survey and interviews with social workers in China found that the higher the level of social support of social workers, the weaker the feelings of burnout. Also, Zhang (54) researching a group of psychological counselors, found that the social support received by this group can help alleviate burnout. The research content mainly focused on the relationship between social support, burnout and the relationship between the two.
In the fourth research question, the influence of demographic variables on the scales and subscales of the survey was studied. More in detail, it became clear that increasing the age of social workers leads to a decrease in the level of physical symptoms, social dysfunction, overall level of symptoms, support from the "significant other", support from friends and overall support. At the same time, an increase in total years of service is associated with a decrease in the level of social dysfunction, support from "significant other", support from friends, and overall level of support from the environment as a whole. Continuing, it was observed that female social workers are characterized by a higher level of physical symptoms, social dysfunction and overall level of symptoms, compared to men. They also receive a higher level of support from their significant other, family and friends, and show a higher overall level of support from the environment.
Previous studies prove that gender is a predictor of fatigue. Studies by Grau et al. (55) and Soler et al. (56) demonstrate that men fail to perceive this. Evans et al. (30) in research they had carried out on social workers, concluded that men were characterized by a higher score compared to women, in terms of depersonalization, i.e. perception disorder. The differences relate to the conflicting socialization roles assigned to the two sexes. More specifically, it is argued that women are socially destined to raise and take care of children, do housework and take care of husbands and elderly members of the family. Men, on the other hand, grow up tough and focus primarily on achievement rather than interdependence and relationship development skills.
Studies focus on the importance of age in burnout. Specifically, Gold (31) and Williams (32) argued that age is inversely related to perceptual ability. Gil-Monte (57) found that the older people are, the less likely they are to not perceive fatigue. Poulin and Walter (34) observed the same phenomenon among social workers. Specifically, they found that age is inversely related to the emotional exhaustion they experience. Jayaratne, Vinokur-Kaplan, and Chess (35) reported that in their research, younger social workers had lower personal achievement and higher rates of failure to perceive fatigue, compared to older social workers. Gil-Monte (57) found a strong correlation of emotional exhaustion with the presence of health problems.
Continuing with the fourth research question, it was observed that widowed social workers are characterized by a higher level of fatigue and married ones by a higher level of support from the "significant other", family and friends and a higher level of support from the social environment in total. Accordingly, those who are divorced show a higher level of depressive symptoms and overall level of symptoms.
In a study by Bargal and Guterman (58) of social workers working in Israel and Siefert, it was concluded that single female workers reported higher rates of burnout than those who were married. A small number of studies focus on the relationship between having children and emotional exhaustion. The results of these reveal the existence of lower levels in people who have children compared to those who do not have children (59). Fuqua and Couture (60) concluded that married and older people with children experience less emotional exhaustion, compared to those who are not married, younger and without children.
Regarding the place of residence, it became clear that it does not affect any scale or subscale in a statistically significant way, while workers in non-governmental organizations present a higher level of physical symptoms and overall level of symptoms, compared to the rest of the social workers. Finally, it is observed that those with a position of responsibility present a higher level of physical symptoms, anxiety and insomnia and overall level of symptoms.
In the research of Gomez-Garcia et al. (59) in a sample of 947 Spanish social workers, found that full-time employment status was the strongest predictor of fatigue. The finding of this research made a particular impression is that although socio-demographic characteristics are important predictors, their effect is ultimately very small.
The current study presents some limitations. The participation of not so large number of professionals is its disadvantage. Moreover, in future studies, apart from demographic and occupational features, other variables could also be studied to see if they can affect fatigue and quality of life, such as personality traits, psychosocial factors of the workplace, working climate or working conditions.