Consequence of continuous and excessive stress is burn out. According to Spaniol and Caputo (1978), burn out is a three-state phenomenon.
First-degree burn out is usually a mild, short-lived bout with anxiety, fatigue, worry and frustration. A new day, a bit of reflective thought or perhaps some relaxation and mild entertainment will reinvigorate body and soul.
Second-degree bout is longer and more intense and is accompanied by mood changes with an increasingly cynical attitude towards the job, superiors, colleagues, subordinates and students, difficulty in achieving restful sleep and persistent irritability.
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Third-degree burn-out is continuous, physically and psychologically debilitating, compounded by depression, a low sense of self-esteem, negative feelings and often withdrawal from work and social contact in personal relationships.
Burn-out has physical, social and intellectual manifestations. According to Glicken and Janka (1985), the burned-out individual is smoldering in place, riddled with stress and dissatisfaction and responding with an ever-increasing loss of energy and interest.
The burned-up individual has progressed to such a degree of lethargy and immobilization that he or she is generally destined for a radical event, such as mental or physical illness, sudden resignation or involuntary termination.
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In most schools and colleges, stressors are present in the environment such as overcrowded classrooms and space, upset parents, limited resources, inadequate salaries, job-politics and so forth. Along with these, unfortunately, educational institutions typically ignore the impact of stress on managers and teachers, even if it reaches the second and third degree stages. Moreover, dysfunctional stress is generally considered a personal problem and the person is left to fend for himself/herself.
Burn-out not only influences job-performance but also harms one’s personal life. People with the following behavioural characteristic; are likely to suffer burn-out:
i. Excessive obsession with outside forces and an external locus of control.
ii. Excessive need for a complete control on all aspects of one’s life.
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iii. Fear of change.
iv. Need for constant excitement and new experiences.
v. Unduly high expectations.