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62 Bureau International de Tourisme Social
Bureau International de
Tourisme Social
Established in June 1963, with its headquarters in
Brussels, Belgium, the goal of the Bureau International
de Tourisme Social �BITS) is to promote
the fundamental human right to rest and leisure.
The majority of its ninety-plus members are
national organisations whose main, if not exclusive,
aim is to develop social tourism. The
organisation's activities include study and research,
coordination and mutual operational aid,
and representation.
JONI E. BAKER, USA
Bureau International pour le
Tourisme et les Echanges de la
Jeunesse
The aim of the Bureau International pour le
Tourisme et les Echanges de la Jeunesse is to create
favourable conditions for the development of
youth tourism through the promotion of international
friendship and cooperation among young
people in the fields of culture, science, sport and
leisure activities. Founded in 1960, its headquarters
is located in Prague, Czech Republic.
burnout
TURGUT VAR, USA
The term `burnout' was coined by Freudenberger
�1980), who defined it as a state of fatigue or
frustration brought about by devotion to a cause, a
way of life, or a relationship that failed to produce
the expected reward. It is a state of physical and
emotional depletion resulting from conditions of
work. The symptoms include a feeling of emotional
and physical exhaustion; a sense of alienation,
cynicism, impatience or negativism; feelings of
detachment; and resentment of work and colleagues.
Burnout victims often have a wide range of
physical symptoms including headaches, stomach
problems, insomnia and heart diseases. In extreme
cases, burnout can lead to even serious psychological
illnesses such as depression or suicide.
The occurrence of burnout appears to be
correlated with numerous self-reported measures
of personal distress, and in particularly with
difficulty in controlling work-related stress. The
common element to most work-related stresses is a
feeling on the part of the individual affected that no
matter how hard the person works, the payoffs in
terms of accomplishment, recognition, advancement
or appreciation are not there.
Empirical studies by Maslach and Jackson
�1986) identified three components of burnout that
were found to be most relevant for human services
professionals. The first of these was emotional
exhaustion, a state of depleted energy which is
assumed to be a response to excessive psychological
and emotional demands made on an
individual. The second was a feeling of low
personal accomplishments, a decline in one's
feelings of competence and successful achievements
in one's work and life. The third was
depersonalization, a term associated with a heartless
response toward clients. Research on burnout
suggests that human service professionals such as
teachers, health services workers and hospitality/
tourism employees are particularly vulnerable to
burnout. Because of the stress of interpersonal
contact ± the pressure to meet emotional needs of
others while remaining `selfish' ± service professionals
appear to experience burnout more than
professionals in other fields.
Most researchers agree that external factors as
well as the individual himself/herself contribute to
burnout. External factors that have been found to
be associated with high level of burnout are role
ambiguity, role conflict, inadequate training, inability
to advance, monotony, work overload, little
or no emotional support, and little reinforcement
from clients, colleagues or administrators. To
recover from burnout, it is commonly believed
that one should take a vacation and travel away
from home and work as a tourist.
References
Freudenberger, H.J. �1980) Burnout:The High Cost of
High Achievement, Garden City, NY: Anchor Press.
Maslach, C. and Jackson, S.E. �1986) Maslach