Employees in service-oriented, relationship-based jobs are prone to experiencing feelings of burnout. As such, paraprofessional staff in college housing environments, resident assistants (RAs), are not immune to its effects. Since navigating relationships is the root cause of burnout, it makes sense to focus on the relationships between…

The multidimensional role of entry-level, live-in residence life and housing staff has grown even more complex in recent years. These staff members, often referred to as resident directors, are frequently asked to go beyond the role of RA supervisor, community builder, and policy enforcer. Now they also serve to support students with significant…

Housing and residence life professionals help students through crises and traumatic events, which may affect their own well-being. Members of higher education student affairs professional organizations, including ACUHO-I, were surveyed to investigate the following relationships: (1) work factors (i.e., job demands, job resources, exposure to…

The role of a resident assistant is complex and multi-faceted, requiring a unique blend of strong interpersonal skills and professional decorum. By contrast, little is known about the depth of self-care needed to mitigate the impact of the role on resident assistants' quality of life. This exploratory mixed-methods research project seeks to…

Supervising resident assistants (RAs) on college and university campuses is one of the most critical roles of housing staff. The job responsibilities of RAs are demanding, and the position is filled with multiple stressors, including role ambiguity, role conflict, and burnout, which can lead to attrition and reduced job satisfaction. Supervision…

Live-in college residential life positions often involve extensive and diverse responsibilities including the support of residential students experiencing traumatic life events. While live-in staff undergo extensive training in regard to supporting these students, they are often ill-equipped to understand and prevent potential negative…

Research on resident assistant burnout peaked in the 1980s, and there has been little scholarship since. Much of the original literature is dated, and some contains unresolved conflicts in the findings. Also, there is a glaring gap in the literature, specifically in how burnout relates to both RA job satisfaction and position departure. This study…

Resident Assistants (RAs) are often faced with working and living among residents who are struggling, in distress, and, at times, in crisis. This article provides a primer on identifying residents in crisis as well as the tasks faced when working with students in transition and crisis. A discussion of the prevalence of distress reported by…

Secondary Traumatic Stress has been described as "the stress resulting from helping or wanting to help a traumatized or suffering person" (Figley, 1999, p. 10). College resident assistants often serve as first-responders to students who have experienced traumatic life events such as severe mental illness, substance abuse, sexual…

Proposes that an important psychological variable, codependence, may help to account for the phenomenon of burnout among resident assistants and other high-achieving, socially able college students. Explores characteristics of codependency. Suggests ways that institutional policy can help to decrease resident assistant burnout and related…

Hypothesizes that student affairs professionals' low retention rate may be due to job stress. Examines the relationship between residence hall work environment and the degree of burnout experienced by full-time directors. Burnout was defined by emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and lack of personal accomplishment and occurred when…

Examined relationship between temperament and burnout in 52 college resident assistants (RAs). None of four RA temperament groupings differed significantly from each other in burnout as measured by the Maslach Burnout Inventory. Concluded that each temperament type deals with RA job in special way and each is susceptible to burnout if healthy…

Examines resident assistant (RA) burnout as a self-defeating behavior. Discusses causes and costs of burnout and positive alternative behaviors. (RC)

Determined the types of constructs with which resident assistants (RAs) (N=23) interpreted their experience and examined the way in which RAs used these dimensions to evaluate specific aspects of their jobs, as well as the relation of the constructs to levels of reported burnout. (ABB)

Presents to student affairs professionals a process for designing physical activities that can actively and metaphorically communicate a message and that can be implemented as part of staff inservice, retreats, or orientations. Describes rationale for activities, historical overview, and example of burnout prevention metaphor for resident…