A relação entre a exposição ao ruído ocupacional e o burnout

: o papel moderador da vulnerabilidade ao stress e do estilo de vida

Abstract

Noise has been widely studied as a factor of occupational risk due to its negative physiological impact on employees’ health. However, there are still few studies that combine the issue of exposure to occupational noise and its psychological effects. In this line, this study aims to investigate the relation between perception of occupational noise (PRO) and burnout, exploring also the possible moderating role of vulnerability to stress (VS) and lifestyle variables (EV). The sample used in this study was composed of 85 employees, 43 females and 42 males aged 19-66, exposed to occupational noise at industrial environments. The data were obtained through questionnaires and the results were analyzed through correlation and moderation analyses. One of our hypotheses was confirmed. Thus, there was a significant association between VS and burnout, in which higher levels of VS were associated with higher levels of burnout. The remaining hypotheses were not confirmed as no significant association was found between PRO and burnout, neither between EV and burnout. The moderating role of VS and of EV in the relation between PRO and burnout was also not confirmed. A supplementary analysis was also carried out including the approximate objective noise, and there was a significant association between objective noise exposure and burnout levels, that is, higher noise levels were associated with higher levels of burnout. The results show that SV and VS moderate the relationship between objective noise and burnout, and this relationship is only significant for individuals who are more vulnerable to stress and with less healthy VS. The main practical implication of this study is to alert to the impact that occupational noise can have on the psychological health of employees, being extremely important the development of more in-depth studies about occupational noise exposure and its psychological effects, as well as studies that included the four variables simultaneously.

Date of Award	14 Jul 2022
Original language	Portuguese
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Luísa Ribeiro (Supervisor) & Cristiana Maria Matos da Costa Pereira (Co-Supervisor)