The economics and management of job burnout: The results of topic modelling

Job burnout, becoming increasingly widespread lately, reduces employee productivity, which has an adverse impact on global economy. The article presents an analysis of academic publications on the economics and management of job burnout, reveals key topics and shapes the agenda for future research. It builds on a review of over 650 scholarly works addressing burnout syndrome within business, economics, and decision-making theory. Topic modelling based on the BERTopic tool was applied, followed by a subsequent qualitative analysis of the identified themes. We distinguish between 14 topics categorized into three groups: general issues, specific issues, and industry-specific aspects. Most publications focus on the prerequisites and outcomes of burnout in the field of education. Experts adhere to three theoretical frameworks: job demands and resources, conservation of resources, and the multidimensional model of burnout. Research into fundamental burnout mechanisms is of the greatest academic influence, though there is a growing relevance of digitalization issues. According to the studies reviewed, job burnout arises from the imbalance between resources and demands. Measures to prevent this syndrome should be multi-level and aimed at strengthening individual, work-related, and organizational resources. The identified topics revolve around academic, geographical, and industry-specific clusters, which is attributable to the dominant social and economic discourse.