Psychometric Characteristics of the Counselor Burnout Inventory (CBI) on a Croatian Sample

Abstract

Burnout in counselors and psychotherapists is defined as the failure to adequately perform clinical tasks due to personal discouragement, apathy towards systemic stress, and emotional and physical exhaustion. This affects approximately 40% of mental health professionals. The aim of this study was to validate the Croatian version of the Counselor Burnout Inventory (CBI, Lee et al., 2007) which contains 20 items divided into five factors. The study was conducted with 242 counselors and psychotherapists from the Republic of Croatia (93.4% women, 72.7% psychologists) with an average of 12.22 years of experience in counseling and/or psychotherapy. The participants completed the CBI questionnaire, the Burnout Assessment Tool (BAT-23) and the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21). Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) supports the validity of the original five-factor structure consisting of the factors: Exhaustion, Incompetence, Negative Work Environment, Devaluing Clients, and Deterioration in Personal Life. The data showed satisfactory descriptive parameters and internal consistency reliability for all subscales as well as adequate construct, convergent and criterion validity for the Croatian version of the CBI questionnaire. Significant moderate to high positive correlations were found between the CBI and an existing measure of burnout (BAT-23) and moderate correlations between the CBI and measures of depression, anxiety and stress. The study confirmed that the Counselor Burnout Inventory (CBI) is a valid instrument for assessing burnout among counselors and psychotherapists in the Republic of Croatia.