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Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment
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Brief Report: Dimensions of Burnout in Professionals Working with Sex Offenders

Geoffrey L. Thorpe

University of Maine, Orono, Maine

Sue Righthand

State Forensic Service, Augusta, Maine

Elizabeth K. Kubik

University of Maine, Orono, Maine

This report describes a brief questionnaire to investigate burnout potential in professionals working with sex offenders in clinical, forensic, and human services settings. The Professional Impact Questionnaire, a 31-item inventory with subscales assessing professional performance, coping strategies, and emotional reactions was tested initially with 17 clinicians who provide sex offender evaluations. In an altered format, the questionnaire was administered to 70 clinicians, jurists, and frontline caseworkers and their supervisors. The satisfactory psychometric properties of the original questionnaire were retained in the modified version with this new sample of respondents. Caseworkers reported significantly greater emotional distress than attorneys and judges. For all participants, negative emotional reactions were associated with a sense of impaired work performance. Using positive coping strategies was correlated with reporting relatively few adverse effects on professional functioning.

Key Words: burnout • vicarious trauma • sex offenders • sex abuse • assessment • test construction.

Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment, Vol. 13, No. 3, 197-203 (2001)
DOI: 10.1177/107906320101300304
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