The Relationship between Academic Burnout, Passion, Emotional Regulation and Self-Compassion: A Structural Equation Modeling

This study aims to investigate the relationship between academic burnout, passion, self-compassion, and emotional regulation using a structural equation model. A total of 630 female postgraduate students participated and completed measures of academic burnout, passion, self-compassion, and emotional regulation scales. The results showed that academic burnout had a significant negative effect on both harmonious and obsessive passion, as well as self-compassion. However, burnout did not significantly affect the two dimensions of emotional regulation (cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression). Self-compassion played a mediating role between burnout and obsessive passion. Emotional regulation dimensions did not play a mediating role between burnout and harmonious passion, nor between burnout and obsessive passion. Moreover, self-compassion and cognitive reappraisal together played a mediating role between both academic burnout and harmonious passion, and between academic burnout and obsessive passion. Meanwhile, self-compassion and expressive suppression together played a mediating role between academic burnout and obsessive passion. The total effect of academic burnout on both passion dimensions were a moderately negative effect. Overall, the results suggest that academic burnout directly and indirectly undermines student' passion, and employing mechanisms such as self-compassion and emotional regulation can help reduce student burnout. Keywords: Academic burnout, harmonious passion, obsessive passion, self-compassion, cognitive reappraisal, expressive suppression, postgraduate students.