Thesis

support especially important in relation to this is the support of supervisors and not as much
the support of colleagues. An issue which has been widely tested and investigated when it
comes to social support is the “buffering” hypothesis. This hypothesis says that the
relationship between work stressors and burnout will be strong when there is low social
support, however, the relationship between work stressors and burnout will be weak when
there is a high social support. Thus, according to this theory social support should work as a
moderator in the relationship between burnout and the work stressors. The research connected
to this hypothesis has according to Maslach (op. cit.) yielded mixed results and further
research is thus needed for its validation.
Throughout the literature it can be found that health care workers who state they have a high
level of social support both at their work and in their personal life, are less prone to burnout
and are more satisfied with their lives (Parikh et al., 2004). Also Harris & Thomson (1993)
have shown that a high perceived social support is connected to higher psychological well-
being. According to Rose et al. (2006) social support has been shown to have a protective
and/or to have a direct impact on health care workers lives (see also for example Browner,
Ellis, Ford, Silsby & Yee, 1987; Harris & Rose, 2002; LaRocco, House & French, 1980).
Stenfert, Kroese & Fleming (1992) showed for example that to have a good connection with
co-workers was rated as the second most common type of social support in a group of health
care workers. Jenkins, Rose & Lovell (1997) carried out a research looking at psychological
well-being in health care workers. They found two factors which always came out as having
an affect on the health care workers psychological well-being, and one of them was social
support. When they looked at the factors mostly inclined to cause depression among the
health care workers they found it to be a lack of social support.
According to Sundin, Hochwälder, Bildt & Lisspers (2007) social support is an important
variable to consider in connection to a health care worker’s health and it has to be taken into
consideration in preventing burnout. Numerous studies have looked at the effects of social
support in connection to different health outcomes (see for example Cohen & Syme, 1985, in
Hochwalder, Bildt & Lissper, 2007; Schwarzer & Leppin, 1989) and even so there is still not
a consensus regarding how to define social support or how to measure it (see for example
Callaghan & Morrissey, 1993; Hupcey, 1998). Payne & Jones (1987, in Sundin, Hochwälder,
Bildt & Lisspers, 2007) state that the different types of social support (which can be from
supervisors, colleagues, family members etc.) have to be distinguished in order for the