Intervention for burnout among chemistry education undergraduates in Nigeria

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine how effectively rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT) could help university undergraduate students in chemistry to manage academic burnout. METHODS: We surveyed 468 undergraduates in the chemistry education program for eligibility and included the first 30 students who showed symptoms of high burnout. We randomly assigned 15 students each to the experimental and control groups. The Oldenburg Burnout Inventory for college students was used to assess students’ burnout at two different periods. The intervention was delivered using a manual for managing burnout. Results: Pre-test results indicated no significant difference in the burnout scores of the control group (mean = 51.43, standard deviation (SD) = 2.74) and experimental group (mean = 52.31, SD = 3.59), t(28) = 0.749. At post-test, the main effect of time on students’ burnout was significant: F(2.27) = 41.91, η(p)(2) = 0.599. The main effect of group on undergraduates’ burnout was also significant: F(1.28) = 1043.67, η(p)(2) = 0.974. There was a significant time × group interaction effect on burnout among participants: F(2.27) = 41.43, η(p)(2) = 0.597. CONCLUSION: Our study findings showed that chemistry students could be helped to manage burnout symptoms, based on REBT theory. REBT methodology should be promoted among university undergraduates with symptoms of academic burnout.