The Efficacy and Acceptability of an Internet-Based Self-Help Program to Reduce Burnout

The Efficacy and Acceptability of an Internet-Based Self-Help Program to Reduce Burnout Among Teachers: A Concurrent Multiple-Baseline Single-Case Experimental Study

The goal of this clinical trial is to determine whether an internet-based self-help program reduces burnout in teachers. The study will also evaluate the program's acceptability which means assessing the extent to which users complete the program and find it useful. The main questions it aims to answer are:

• Does the program reduce the level of burnout in teachers?
• Does the program contribute to an increased sense of meaning for teachers?
• How much of the program do teachers finish?

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Burnout, Professional
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: MyLife: An internet-based self-help program to reduce burnout

Detailed Description

This concurrent multiple-baseline single-case experimental study aims to assess the efficacy and acceptability of an internet-based self-help program designed to mitigate burnout among teachers. The self-help program, named MyLife, adopts an Acceptance and Commitment Therapy framework and comprises eight modules. Preceding the commencement of the study, the program was tailored to address the specific needs of teachers through collaboration with people with lived experiences and the administration of nationwide surveys. Additionally, the daily questions utilized in this single-case study design were meticulously crafted for this study. In this study no guidance other than reminders will be offered.

Participants will be instructed to:

• Engage with program content, including audio and text components, every three days over a four-week period.
• Respond to daily questions once in day for eight weeks and both before and after the study, utilizing scales and questionnaires.

The research questions are as follows:

1. To what extent does the program alleviate burnout among teachers?
2. Does the program foster a heightened sense of meaning in teachers' professional lives?
3. What is the completion rate of the program among participating teachers?
4. Does the program effectively diminish experiential avoidance?

Hypotheses:

1. Teachers participating in the MyLife program will experience a significant decrease in burnout levels compared to baseline measures.
2. The MyLife program will lead to a significant increase in the perception of meaning in teachers' professional lives.
3. MyLife program will have a good acceptability.
4. Participation in the MyLife program will be associated with a significant reduction in experiential avoidance among teachers.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 25
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Havvanur Uysal Akdemir, MS; Phone Number: +90 (212) 269 66 11; Email: havvanur.uysal@cansagligivakfi.org

Study Locations

• Turkey
  • Istanbul, Turkey
    • Recruiting
    • CanSagligi Foundation Center for Contextual Behavioral Science
    • Contact: Eda Aksoy; Phone Number: +90(216) 269 66 11; Email: eda.aksoy@cansagligivakfi.org
    • Principal Investigator: Ahmet Nalbant, MD
    • Sub-Investigator: Havvanur Uysal Akdemir, MS
    • Sub-Investigator: Edanur Gürbüz, BA
    • Sub-Investigator: Kaasım Fatih Yavuz, MD
    • Sub-Investigator: Meryem Gökçe Yavuz, BA

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Being a teacher in Türkiye
• Having burnout symptoms related to the workplace.
• Able to use e-mail, internet and mobile phone
• Able to read fluently in Turkish

Exclusion Criteria:

• Currently prescribed psychotropic medication or any change in psychotropic medication in last two months
• Currently undergoing psychotherapy.
• Having thoughts of suicide or self-mutilation.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: N/A
• Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

1

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: MyLife Group; In this concurrent multiple-baseline single-case experimental study, participants will have seven to fifteen days of baseline measurement with randomization.	Behavioral: MyLife: An internet-based self-help program to reduce burnout; MyLife is a internet-based and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy oriented self-help program to reduce burnout. In this study a tailored to teachers version of the program will be used.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Burnout Assessment Tool	Burnout Assessment Tool is a validated measure which evaluates to what extend people experience burnout in work place. The scale is a 5-point Likert type, meaning "1 = Never" to "5 = Always" (minimum:34 to maxiumum:150). Higher scores from the scale represent higher burnout. Turkish validity and reliability study was conducted and Cronbach's alpha value was stated as 0.95.	At baseline and after 8 weeks
Valued Living Questionnaire	Valued Living Questionnaire is a validated measure and its aim is to evaluate valued living. The scale consists of 10 items with a 7-point Likert type as 0 = Not at all true and 6 = Completely true (minimum:0; maxiumum:60). The scale, for which Turkish validity and reliability studies have been conducted, has two sub-dimensions: "progress" and "blockage". While the progress subscale expresses that the person takes action in line with his values, the blockage dimension means that the person avoids certain experiences and moves away from a value-oriented life. The Cronbach's alpha value of the Turkish version of the scale was found to be 0.78; as for the progress sub-dimension was 0.77, and for the blockage dimension was 0.76.	At baseline and after 8 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-2	AAQ-2 is a measure aiming to evaluate experiential avoidance. The scale consists of 7-point Likert type (minimum:7 to maxiumum 49). Higher points indicate higher experiential avoidance.	At baseline and after 8 weeks
System Usability Scale	System Usability Scale aims to measure evaluations of participants about an internet based program. It has 10 items which consists of 5-point Likert-type questions. Higher points indicate better usability of the system (Minimum:0 to maximum:100).	After eight weeks
Attendance rate	To evaluate acceptability, participants attendance rate to the program will be recorded.	After eight weeks.

Other Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Daily measures	Daily measures will include questions about burnout, valued living and experiential avoidance.	Daily questions will be asked during 8 weeks and data will be collected daily.

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Ahmet Nalbant
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Ahmet Nalbant, MD, CanSagligi Foundation Center for Contextual Behavioral Science

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): April 15, 2024
• Primary Completion (Estimated): June 15, 2024
• Study Completion (Estimated): June 15, 2024

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: April 8, 2024
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: April 17, 2024
• First Posted (Actual): April 19, 2024

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): April 19, 2024
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: April 17, 2024
• Last Verified: April 1, 2024

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Acceptance and Commitment Therapy; Burnout; İnternet-based psychotherapy; Single-case design
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Behavioral Symptoms; Stress, Psychological; Occupational Stress; Occupational Diseases; Burnout, Professional; Burnout, Psychological
• Other Study ID Numbers: CSV202401

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO
• IPD Plan Description: Data sharing would be available upon request

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No