Professional Self-Realization as a Factor in the Psychological Well-Being of Specialists of Caring Professions

Olena D. Glavinska; Irina M. Ovdiyenko; Oleksandra V. Brukhovetska; Tetiana V. Chausova; Maryna S. V. Didenko

doi:10.6000/2292-2598.2020.08.03.32

Authors

Olena D. Glavinska Department of Psychology and Naturel Sciences, Rivne State University of the Humanitarians, Rivne, Ukraine
Irina M. Ovdiyenko Department of Psychology and Pedagogy, Faculty of Pedagogy and Psychology, National Pedagogical Dragomanov University, Kyiv, Ukraine
Oleksandra V. Brukhovetska Department of Psychology and Personal Development, Educational and Scientific Institute of Management and Psychology, State Institution of Higher Education “University of Educational Management”, Kyiv, Ukraine
Tetiana V. Chausova Department of Psychology and Personal Development, Educational and Scientific Institute of Management and Psychology, State Institution of Higher Education “University of Educational Management”, Kyiv, Ukraine
Maryna S. V. Didenko Department of Psychology and Personal Development, Educational and Scientific Institute of Management and Psychology, State Institution of Higher Education “University of Educational Management”, Kyiv, Ukraine

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.6000/2292-2598.2020.08.03.32

Keywords:

Psychological well-being, professional self-fulfilment, self-realization, burnout, work-life balance, workplace well-being.

Abstract

Research Objective: the article discusses the mutual influence of professional self-realization and the psychological well-being of specialists of caring professions. Methodology: correlation and comparative analysis in different professional groups of specialists. The study involved 465 volunteers with work experience of 3 to 40 years: teachers, doctors, medical personnel, psychologists of state and private enterprises. Several standardized self-reports were used to collect data: Ryff’s Scales of Psychological Well-being, Professional Burnout Questionnaire, Kokun’s Professional Self-Fulfilment Questionnaire, Gura’s Workplace Satisfaction Self-assessment Survey, Tkalych’s Work-Life Balance additional scale. The use of the open questions allowed clarifying some phenomenological manifestations of professional self-realization among specialists of caring professions, as well as to clarifying the external and internal determinants of self-realization. The authors tested the hypotheses about the influence of several factors on the level of psychological well-being: belonging to a certain professional group, the degree of self-realization, as well as age, gender, and length of service. The results of the study present the structure of well-being and features of self-realization in different professional groups. We proved that professional self-realization is a significant factor in the formation of individual components of psychological well-being: self-acceptance and competence. However, in some cases, high scores for professional self-realization may be associated with burnout and the desire to leave the job. The conclusions contain recommendations on organizational agency and direct psychological interventions that ensure the psychological well-being of specialists of caring professions.

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