Bending or breaking? Examining the relationship between psychological inflexibility, resilience, professional fulfilment and burnout among cancer care professionals in Ireland

Farrell, Lynn, Kracen, Amanda, Fox, Robert, Corrigan, Lynda, Alken, Scheryll and Collins, Dearbhaile (2026) Bending or breaking? Examining the relationship between psychological inflexibility, resilience, professional fulfilment and burnout among cancer care professionals in Ireland. Frontiers in Psychology, 17. ISSN 1664-1078

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Abstract

Objective: Healthcare professionals (HCPs) in cancer care face increasing challenges with demand for care outpacing workforce growth. Professional demands contribute to decreases in job satisfaction and increases in experiences of burnout, which have serious implications for patient care and staff wellbeing. It is, therefore, important to determine factors that may buffer against burnout. This study focused on psychological inflexibility and resilience as psychological characteristics that may predict dimensions of burnout and support professional fulfilment.

Methods: We administered an anonymous self-report survey to HCPs in Ireland through professional networks. Structural Equation Modelling assessed how gender, career stage, resilience and psychological inflexibility related to dimensions of burnout and professional fulfilment among 179 cancer care HCPs in Ireland.

Results: Psychological inflexibility predicted higher emotional exhaustion and depersonalization, while resilience predicted lower professional inefficacy and higher professional fulfilment. Women reported higher emotional exhaustion and lower professional fulfilment. Early career HCPs showed higher depersonalization.

Conclusion: Our findings demonstrate a relationship between psychological inflexibility, resilience and key markers of personal and professional wellbeing. This suggests a potential pathway for comprehensive intervention; while waiting for adequate systemic change, promoting greater resilience and psychological flexibility may support cancer care HCPs in the workplace.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	© 2026 Farrell, Kracen, Fox, Corrigan, Alken and Collins. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
Uncontrolled Keywords:	burnout; cancer care; health care professionals; professional fulfilment; psychological flexibility; psychological inflexibility; resilience
Subjects:	B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > Psychology R Medicine > Healthcare Industry H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor > Issues of Labour and Work > Quality of Work Life / Job Satisfaction B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > Psychology > Stress (Psychology)
Divisions:	School of Business and Social Sciences > Staff Research and Publications
Depositing User:	Tamara Malone
Date Deposited:	23 Jun 2026 12:48
Last Modified:	23 Jun 2026 12:48
URI:	https://norma.ncirl.ie/id/eprint/9386

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