Highly engaged but burned out: intra-individual profiles in the US workforce

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to use the job demands-resources model to investigate intra-individual engagement-burnout profiles, and demands-resources profiles.& para;& para;Design/methodology/approach - A representative sample of the US workforce was surveyed online. Latent profile analysis (LPA) and configural frequency analysis examined intra-individual profiles and their inter-relations.& para;& para;Findings -A negative inter-individual correlation between engagement and burnout suggested that burnout tends to be lower when engagement is high, but intra-individual analyses identified both aligned engagement-burnout profiles (high, moderate, and low on both variables), and discrepant profiles engagement - low burnout; high burnout - low engagement). High engagement and burnout co-occurred in 18.8 percent of workers. These workers reported strong mixed (positive and negative) emotions and intended to leave their organization. Another LPA identified three demands-resources profiles: low demands - low resources, but moderate self-efficacy, low workload and bureaucracy demands but moderate information processing demands - high resources, and high demands - high resources. Workers with high engagement - high burnout profiles often reported high demands - high resources profiles. In contrast, workers with high engagement - low burnout profiles often reported profiles of high resources, moderate information processing demands, and low other demands.& para;& para;Originality/value - This study examined the intersection of intra-individual engagement-burnout profiles and demands-resources profiles. Previous studies examined only one of these sides or relied on inter-individual analyses. Interestingly, many employees appear to be optimally engaged while they are burned-out and considering to leave their jobs. Demands and resources facets were distinguished in the LPA, revealing that some demands were associated with resources and engagement.