Jeffery Liao
University of Washington Bothell
Burnout occurs when a tutor works under high stress for long periods of time and feels little or no sense of accomplishment. Inexperienced tutors were concerned adjusting to work culture and administrative tasks. Experienced tutors were typically exhausted by trying to maintain work-school-life balance and mentoring responsibilities. Tutor-leaders frequently cited a lack of personal resources and were the most likely group to be burned out. Neurological changes included an enlarged amygdala and the thinning of the frontal cortex, both of which result in a weakened ability to control negative emotion and decision making. To combat burnout and prevent tutors from experiencing detrimental neurological changes, writing center administrators can foster employee resilience through a stress management toolkit.
Fantastic job covering this topic Jeff! I loved how you defined what burnout is, explained how it affects tutors, and suggested ways that we can prevent it from happening to us. I feel like this is a really worthwhile issue to spend some time on and your presentation definitely points us in the right direction.