McDonald Shelby E, Kogan Lori R, Nageotte Nichole L, Currin-McCulloch Jennifer, Dickler-Mann Rachel
Department of Community Research and Evaluation, Denver Zoological Foundation, Denver, CO, United States.
Clinical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States.
Front Psychiatry. 2024 Apr 3;15:1373525. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2024.1373525. eCollection 2024.
Burnout and mental health among animal care and health professionals (ACHPs) has received increasing attention in recent years. Despite rapid growth of research in this area, the wellbeing of individuals who work and/or volunteer in zoo settings has received minimal attention.
An anonymous online survey was created to evaluate zoo staff and volunteers' experiences of animal-related loss, rates of professional fulfillment and burnout, mental health, perceived organizational support, and resilience. Participants included 1695 zoo professionals (72% ACHPs, 20% other staff) and volunteers (7%) who were recruited through relevant professional listservs and online platforms, and flyers on zoo grounds.
ACHPs reported higher levels of anxiety, depression, and burnout and lower levels of professional fulfillment than other zoo staff and volunteers. The most common animal-related losses experienced by ACHPs in the past year were unexpected death (80%) and anticipated loss (74%), with more than half of these losses occurring within the past 3 months. ACHPs' reported bond with animals under their care was positively associated with depression and anxiety. Having a formal ritual or process following the death of an animal was positively associated with job fulfillment and perceived organizational support and negatively associated with depression and burnout-yet only 17% of participants in our sample indicated that their zoo had such a process or ritual.
Our findings suggest that many ACHPs are struggling with burnout, anxiety, depression, and low rates of professional fulfilment and perceived organizational support. We recommend that zoos develop organizational plans that foster a culture which normalizes and validates grief/loss experiences and is proactive in responding to animal loss, related trauma, and other occupational stressors. The results of this research demonstrate the need for systemic changes within the zoo industry, for the betterment and welfare of both humans and the animals under their care.
近年来，动物护理与健康专业人员（ACHPs）的职业倦怠和心理健康问题日益受到关注。尽管该领域的研究迅速增长，但在动物园工作和/或志愿服务的人员的福祉却很少受到关注。
开展了一项匿名在线调查，以评估动物园工作人员和志愿者在与动物相关的损失方面的经历、职业成就感和职业倦怠率、心理健康、感知到的组织支持以及心理韧性。参与者包括1695名动物园专业人员（72%为动物护理与健康专业人员，20%为其他工作人员）和志愿者（7%），他们是通过相关专业邮件列表、在线平台以及动物园内的传单招募而来的。
与其他动物园工作人员和志愿者相比，动物护理与健康专业人员报告的焦虑、抑郁和职业倦怠水平更高，职业成就感水平更低。在过去一年中，动物护理与健康专业人员经历的最常见的与动物相关的损失是意外死亡（80%）和预期损失（74%），其中一半以上的损失发生在过去3个月内。动物护理与健康专业人员报告的与他们照顾的动物之间的情感联系与抑郁和焦虑呈正相关。在动物死亡后有正式的仪式或流程与工作成就感和感知到的组织支持呈正相关，与抑郁和职业倦怠呈负相关——但在我们的样本中，只有17%的参与者表示他们所在的动物园有这样的流程或仪式。
我们的研究结果表明，许多动物护理与健康专业人员正在与职业倦怠、焦虑、抑郁以及职业成就感低和感知到的组织支持不足作斗争。我们建议动物园制定组织计划，营造一种文化，使悲伤/损失经历正常化并得到认可，并积极应对动物损失、相关创伤和其他职业压力源。这项研究的结果表明，动物园行业需要进行系统性变革，以改善人类和他们所照顾的动物的福祉。
