ABSTRACT
Background: The problems of burnout and its impact have become a global economic concern arising among the working population worldwide. Owing to the demanding nature of trading in an unstable economy, traders in Nigeria are constantly faced with many stressful conditions that can easily predispose them to burnout. This study aimed to assess the knowledge, attitude and prevalence of burnout among traders in Benin City. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out among 410 traders selected from four different markets in Benin City. A multi-stage sampling technique was used to the respondents from four markets across the four Local Government Area of Benin City. Data was collected using self–administered questionnaire obtain from the Stigma and Self-Stigma Scale(SASS) and Maslach burnout inventory tools containing both open ended and close ended questions. The data was analyzed using IBM SPSS version 25. The level of statistical significance was set at p < 0.05 at 95% confidence interval. Ethical approval was obtained from Ethics and Research Committee, University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH). Results: The mean age of respondents studied was 37.4 ± 9.8 years with a total of 207 (50.5%) male respondents and 203 (49.5%) female. In relation to religion, 319 (77.8%) were Christians and others. Bini 100 (24.4%) constituted the more common ethnic group by the respondent. In relation to marital status, 244 (59.5%) of the respondents were married and most of them, 361 (88.0%), were from a nuclear family. In relation to factors associated with burnout, 27.7% (61), 56.1% (230), 4.9% (55) were identified to have good knowledge, positive attitude, and haven’t burnout respectively among respondent. The statistically significant predictors of knowledge of burnout were age (OR = 0.943, 95% Cl = 0.899 - 0.988, p = 0.014), family size (OR = 0.399, 95% xi Cl = 0.172 - 0.926, p = 0.032) and average work day per week (OR = 0.408, 95% Cl = 0.197 - 0.844, p = 0.016). The statistically significant predictor of attitude towards burnout were age (OR =1.047, 95% Cl = 1.017 - 1.077, p = 0.002), sex (OR =0.439, 95% Cl = 0.283 - 0.683, p = < 0.001) and average work day per week (OR =1.857, 95% Cl = 1.203 - 2.867, p = 0.005). Two hundred and eighty one (68.5%) of the respondents identify long working hours as the major cause of burnout and 207 (50.5%) of the respondents also attributed burnout to disappointment with business growth. Overall, 355 (86.6%) of the respondents had experienced burnout in at least one of the three subscales. Also, lack of personal accomplishment was the predominant subscale experienced, affecting 229 (55.9%) of the respondents. The prevalence of anxiety attacks was 23.4% (96) mild, 57.8% (237) moderate and 18.8% (77) severe while prevalence of depression was 30.2% (124) mild, 56.6% (232) moderate and 13.2% (54) severe. Age was found to be the sole predictor of burnout prevalence among the respondents (OR = 1.065, 95% Cl = 1.002 - 1.131, p = 0.043). Conclusion: The study showed that more than half of the respondents were aware of burnout and majority of them have poor knowledge of burnout. Nearly half of the respondents have negative attitude towards burnout. Similarly, majority had experienced burnout in at least one of the three subscales. It is recommended that market authorities and market associations leaders should organize awareness campaign programs and seminar that will help create more awareness and reduce societal stigma towards burnout and other mental health conditions. Keywords: Burnout, Knowledge, Attitude, Prevalence, Causes, Factors and Traders
