2021

By Lydie Masengo

“If you don’t take time for your wellness, you will be forced to take time for your illness.” – Joyce Sunada

It has been a year since our world has been changed since the onset of the pandemic, which has negatively affected many people’s mental health. Working as a crisis line responder and research assistant, I have been exposed to many people’s mental health concerns as they report dealing with isolation, loneliness, losses and despair. Consequently, there has been a significant increase in the number of people seeking therapy, which resulted in significant work pressure experienced by mental health practitioners, putting them at a higher risk of burnout (Joshi & Sharma, 2020).

They experience “a great deal of emotional stress, and failure to cope successfully with such stress can result in the emotional exhaustion syndrome of burnout” (Maslach, 1978, p. 11). This, in turn, can interfere with their ability to use their counselling skills effectively, leading them to become a potential threat to current and future clients (Lawson et al., 2007). Socio-economic implications to society include triggering presenteeism and absenteeism, resulting in a loss of productivity while counselling (Gosselin et al., 2013). This is economically costly due to an increase in additional expenses in sickness benefits along with the risk of future disability pension (Ahola et al., 2009; Borritz et al., 2006).

These negative effects can act as a hindrance in mental health practitioners’ career development, which is defined as a process of evolving one’s occupational status through exploration, self-knowledge and decision making, and aligning oneself with one’s career advancement opportunities (McKay, 2020). This emphasizes the importance of self-care for this demographic of professionals, who are facing in high demand today given the stresses and distresses of the pandemic.

Engaging in self-care behaviours is not usually what comes to mind when thinking about career development, but in fact, self-care is an ethical imperative requirement for the counselling profession: “Engage in self-care activities that help to avoid conditions (e.g., burnout) that could result in impaired judgment and interfere with their ability to benefit and not harm others” (Canadian Psychological Association, 2017, p. 20). Self-care behaviours are crucial to prevent burnout (Barnet et al., 2007). For example, the experience of burnout decreases counsellors’ empathy and communication with their clients (Montero-Marin et al., 2016). If unresolved, this could lead to dangerous behaviours such as dual relationships and fiscal improprieties (Gabbard, 1991; Schoener, 1995).

During the coronavirus pandemic, counsellors reported not engaging in adequate self-care while at work, resulting in higher than usual employee turnover (Buckner, 2020). As self-care serves as a protective factor to feeling emotionally exhausted and depleted (Farber & Heifetz, 1981; Rupert & Kent, 2007), it is imperative for mental health practitioners to remember to take care of themselves first. Early prevention and intervention of burnout are essential for mental health practitioners to provide high-quality care to clients and reduce unnecessary economic costs to society, which is already struggling. As mental health practitioners use themselves as vessels to support other people’s mental health needs, I hope that this article serves as a reminder that you cannot experience growth in your career while pouring from an empty cup. I urge you to take care of yourself.

Lydie Masengo is an MA Ed in Counselling Psychology candidate at the University of Ottawa. Her master’s thesis explores distress, burnout and self-care strategies. She will be completing her counselling internship as a psychotherapist-in-training at Carleton University’s From Intention To Action program, which supports clients with different presenting issues including academic, career and personal life stressors.

References

Ahola, K., Toppinen-Tanner, S., Huuhtanen, P., Koskinen, A., & Väänänen, A. (2009, May). Occupational burnout and chronic work disability: An eight-year cohort study on pensioning among Finnish forest industry workers. Journal of Affective Disorders, 115(1- 2), 150-159. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2008.09.021

Barnett, J. E., Baker, E. K., Elman, N. S., & Schoener, G. R. (2007). In pursuit of wellness: The self-care imperative. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 38(6), 603-612. https://doi.org/10.1037/0735-7028.38.6.603

Borritz, M., Rugulies, R., Christensen, K. B., Villadsen, E., & Kristensen, T. S. (2006, February).

Burnout as a predictor of self-reported sickness absence among human service workers: Prospective findings from three year follow up of the PUMA study. Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 63(2), 98. https://doi.org/10.1136/oem.2004.019364

Buckner, D. (2020, November). Calls to Kids Help Phone have surged. Now some counsellors are making a distress call of their own. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/kids-help-phone- toxic-workplace-1.5790617

Canadian Psychological Association. (2017). Canadian code of ethics for psychologists(4thed.). Ottawa, ON. https://cpa.ca/docs/File/Ethics/CPA_Code_2017_4thEd.pdf

Farber, B. A., & Heifetz, L. J. (1981, October). The satisfactions and stresses of psychotherapeutic work: A factor analytic study. Professional Psychology,12(5), 621– 630. https://doi.org/10.1037/0735-7028.12.5.621

Gabbard, G. O. (1991, November) Psychodynamics of sexual boundary violations. Psychiatric Annals, 21(11), 651-655. https://doi.org/10.3928/0048-5713-19911101-06

Gosselin, E., Lemyre, L., & Corneil, W. (2013, January). Presenteeism and absenteeism: Differentiated understanding of related phenomena. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 18(1), 75-86. http://doi.org/10.1037/a0030932

Joshi, G., & Sharma, G. (2020). Burnout: A risk factor amongst mental health professionals during COVID-19. Asian Journal of Psychiatry, 54, 102300–102300. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajp.2020.102300

Lawson, G., Venart, E., Hazier, R. J., & Kottler, J. A. (2007, March). Toward a Culture of Counselor Wellness. The Journal of Humanistic Counseling, Education and Development, 46(1), 5–19. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2161-1939.2007.tb00022.x

Maslach, C. (1978, October). The Client Role in Staff Burn-Out. Journal of Social Issues, 34(4), 111–124. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-4560.1978.tb00778.x

McKay, D. (2020, August 4). What is career development? https://www.thebalancecareers.com/what-is-career-development-525496#citation-1

Montero-Marin, J., Zubiaga, F., Cereceda, M., Demarzo, M. M. P., Trenc, P., & Garcia- Campayo, J. (2016, June 16). Burnout subtypes and absence of self-compassion in primary healthcare professionals: A cross-sectional study. PLoS ONE, 11(6), 17. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0157499

Rupert, P. A., & Kent, J. S. (2007, February). Gender and work setting differences in career- sustaining behaviors and burnout among professional psychologists. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 38(1), 88-96. http://doi.org/10.1037/0735- 7028.38.1.88

Schoener, G. R. (1995). Assessment of professionals who have engaged in boundary violations. Psychiatric Annals, 25(2), 95-99. https://doi.org/10.3928/0048-5713-19950201-08

By Michael Ford

While studying at my mostly deserted university campus recently, another student asked if I was a professor, a question I get a lot as a mature student. The fact I am often older than my professors may have something to do with this, but that’s another story. After clarifying that I was a graduate student, he expressed how much trouble he was having since the pandemic forced classes online, in part because he was unable to connect in the same way with professors.

For many students, that wouldn’t be a problem. But for this earnest young gentleman, who was on the autism spectrum, it mattered greatly that he couldn’t be face-to-face with instructors and students and was no longer receiving the support and accommodations he had become accustomed to. In the process of researching and writing a paper on learning disabilities, I wondered what impact the pandemic might be having on his career development and students like him. Although he may feel alone, he actually has lots of company; among Canadian youth aged 15–24, learning disabilities are the second-most common type of disability, just slightly behind mental health-related disabilities (Statistics Canada, 2017).

A disproportionate impact

It’s no secret that COVID-19 forced all educational institutions to adjust both teaching practices and student services such as career education. A survey by the Student Experience in the Research University Consortium – an academic and policy research collaboration – revealed that the pandemic has affected the well-being of students with disabilities at a disproportionate rate in multiple ways (Soria et al., 2020). Specifically, they are less likely than students without disabilities to feel like they belong and that they have been supported by their institution, among other challenges and hardships.

Addressing this disparity and inequity requires a system-wide approach. Considering that a student’s well-being largely depends on future plans and their career path, career practitioners have a role to play in this response.

Helping all students recover

As for how the career profession can help disabled clients recover from the pandemic, a recent international survey of career practitioners and policy makers in 93 countries identified issues around inclusion, access to in-person and digital services and individualizing solutions (Cedefop et al, 2020). Even before the pandemic, however, individuals with learning disabilities suffered greater unemployment and underemployment and were disadvantaged in their career progression (Chen, 2021).

To respond to the needs of this population, researchers such as Charles Chen (University of Toronto’s Ontario Institute for Studies in Education) refer to the unique career development needs of learning-disabled students. For those working with these clients, inside or outside post-secondary institutions, it is now even more paramount that they adapt career exploration and decision-making practices and resources to diverse learners, reach out to a greater share of the learning-disabled population, better connect career planning to well-being, develop a relationship of trust so that more clients disclose their disabilities, promote a strength-focused rather than deficit-focused approach with clients, help clients develop self-efficacy beliefs and direct clients toward a greater awareness of their personal capacities.

Unfortunately, I didn’t get the name or contact information of the student I met on campus, so I am unable to find out if things improved for him as he became more acclimated to the new ways of learning. I can only hope that those in career development serving him and his peers with learning disabilities continue to educate themselves about learning disabilities and become better at helping all students achieve their full potential. A good place to start for further information is the Learning Disabilities Association of Canada.

Michael Ford is an MA student in educational psychology at Simon Fraser University (SFU) and is also an instructor in SFU’s Career Development Practitioner program. Michael is particularly interested in the shifting dynamics and trends of the workplace and jobs, labour market information, work/life transition and the future of work in times of uncertainty and rapid technological change. This past January, he co-presented at CERIC’s Cannexus21 conference in a session titled “Hindsight is 2020: Youth Transition in Uncertain Times.” Prior to returning to school, Michael assembled a long and diverse career in communications, business and the arts.

References

Cedefop; European Commission; ETF; ICCDPP; ILO; OECD; UNESCO (2020). Career guidance policy and practice in the pandemic: results of a joint international survey – June to August 2020. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union. http://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2801/318103

Chen, C. P. (2021). Career counselling university students with learning disabilities. British Journal of Guidance & Counselling, 49(1), 44–56. https://doi.org/10.1080/03069885.2020.1811205

Soria, K. M., Horgos, B., Chirikov, I., & Jones-White, D. (2020). The experiences of undergraduate students with physical, learning, neurodevelopmental, and cognitive disabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. SERU Consortium, University of California – Berkeley and University of Minnesota.17

Statistics Canada. (2017). Canadian Survey on Disability. https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/181128/dq181128a-eng.htm

By Simonne Mastrella

Job interviews are often met with feelings of nervousness or apprehension (McCarthy & Goffin, 2004). Considering that interviews are high-stakes situations, this experience of interview anxiety is far from surprising. It is, however, problematic for candidates. In addition to being unpleasant, considerable research has found that self-reported interview anxiety is associated with lower interview scores from interviewers (Powell et al., 2018). This negative correlation is of a moderate size (𝜌 = −.19) but because there are often more candidates than available positions for a job, interview anxiety can meaningfully impact whether a candidate receives a job offer. The big question for organizations, candidates and career counsellors alike is: should it?

The relation between interview anxiety and job performance

It’s not an accident that employment interviews are one of the most frequently used methods to assess job applicants; they tend to be good predictors of future job performance (Macan, 2009; Cortina et al., 2000). A qualified job candidate could use their knowledge, skills and abilities to obtain a high interview score and consequently, the job. Once hired, those demonstrated qualifications would enable them to be a high-performing employee.

The predictive power of the interview is contingent on the idea that the factors that impact interview performance also impact job performance (Huffcutt, Van Iddekinge, & Roth, 2011). What does this mean for interview anxiety? If anxious interviewees would be poor on-the-job performers – perhaps because anxious interviewees tend to be unqualified – then interview anxiety is a relevant factor to consider when making employment decisions. It is also possible, however, that interview anxiety is unrelated to a candidate’s suitability for the job and therefore should not factor into employment decisions. Which is it?

What the research suggests

Ironically, it is difficult to assess how interview anxiety relates to job performance because anxious interviewees are often not hired, because of their poor interview performance. This said, a few studies were able to explore this relation by using interviews for residence dons and co-op positions at Southern Ontario universities – positions in which a large number of applicants are hired, including anxious interviewees with relatively low scores. The researchers correlated interview scores with supervisor-rated performance scores and found that interview anxiety appeared to be unrelated to job performance (Schneider et al., 2019; Zhang et al., 2021). So, anxious interviewees are not necessarily worse performers than non-anxious interviewees. It is important to note that these studies were correlational, so it cannot be concluded that interview anxiety caused interviewees to perform poorly; it is also possible that interviewees who performed poorly reported feeling more anxious after the interview. However, the unrelatedness between interview and job performance suggests that anxiety may interfere with a qualified candidate’s ability to demonstrate their qualifications.

The potential impact of interview anxiety on interview performance

Although research has yet to fully explain the mechanisms behind the relation between interview anxiety and interview performance, there are some theories. Anxiety may:

• Take up the cognitive resources needed to interpret the interview question and come up with a response (Eysenck et al., 2007)
• Decrease the use of effective interview performance strategies, such as self-disclosure (Alden & Bieling, 1977)
• Lead to incoherent delivery of responses, through stuttering, pausing and using filler words (e.g. um, ah, like) (Miller et al., 2018; Feiler & Powell, 2016); or
• Contribute to awkward social behaviour (e.g. lack of eye contact) (DeGroot & Motowidlo, 1999).

The good news, however, is that social skills training that focuses on improving fluent responses and other skills such as composure and eye contact can help improve interview performance (Hollandsworth et al., 1978). In the meantime, hiring managers should exercise caution about factoring interview anxiety in the selection decision. Otherwise, qualified but anxious candidates may be passed over. And that is reason to worry.

References

Alden, L. E. & Bieling, P. (1997). Interpersonal consequences of the pursuit of safety. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 36(1), 53-64.

Cortina, J. M., Goldstein, N. B., Payne, S. C., Davison, H. K., & Gilliland, S. W. (2000). The incremental validity of interview scores over and above cognitive ability and conscientiousness. Personnel Psychology, 53(2), 325-351.

DeGroot, T. & Motowidlo, S. J. (1999). Why visual and vocal interview cues can affect interviewers’ judgments and predict job performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 84(6), 986-993.

Eysenck, M. W., Derakshan, N., Santos, R., & Calvo, M. G. (2007). Anxiety and cognitive performance: Attentional control theory. Emotion, 7(2), 336-353.

Hollandsworth Jr., J. G., Kazelskis, R., Stevens, J., & Dressel, M. E. (1978). Relative contributions of verbal, articulative, and nonverbal communication to employment decisions in the job interview setting. Personnel Psychology, 32(2), 359-367.

Feiler, A. R. & Powell, D. M. (2016). Behavioural expression of job interview anxiety. Journal of Business Psychology, 31(1), 155-171.

Huffcutt, A., Van Iddekinge, C., & Roth, P. (2011). Understanding applicant behaviour in employment interviews: A theoretical model of interviewee performance. Human Resource Management Review, 21(4), 353-367.

Macan. T. (2009). The employment interview: A review of current studies and directions for future research. Human Resource Management Review, 19(3), 203-218.

McCarthy, J. & Goffin, R. (2004). Measuring job interview anxiety: Beyond weak knees and sweaty palms. Personnel Psychology, 57(3), 607-637.

Miller, R. O., Gayfer, B. L., & Powell, D. M. (2018). Influence of vocal and verbal cues on ratings of interview anxiety and interview performance. Personnel Assessment and Decisions, 4(2), 26-41.

Powell, D. M., Stanley, D. J., & Brown, K. N. (2018). Meta-analysis of the relation between interview anxiety and interview performance. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science, 50(4), 195-207.

Schneider, L., Powell, D. M., & Bonaccio, S. (2019). Does interview anxiety predict job performance and does it influence the predictive validity of interviews? International Journal of Selection and Assessment, 27, 328-336.

Zhang, I. Y., Powell, D. M., & Bonaccio, S. (2021, April). The role of fear of negative evaluation in interview and workplace anxiety [Part of symposium]. Investigating Discriminatory Behaviors in Employment Interviews. Virtual.

Simonne Mastrella is a first-year master’s student in Industrial-Organizational Psychology at the University of Guelph and a Junior Consultant for Organization & Management Solutions. Her research interests include employment interviews, particularly how interview anxiety impacts interview performance.

By Zhanna Lyubykh

Work has many benefits. It provides structure, serves as a source of meaning and offers opportunities for social inclusion. Yet some groups of people are disadvantaged when it comes to finding meaningful careers. Despite labour legislation ensuring equal rights for all groups, research demonstrates that people with disabilities are two times more likely to be unemployed (Fogg et al., 2010). This is a particular concern for Canada considering high prevalence rates of disability in the Canadian population. One factor that contributes to this dismal state of affairs is absent or poor job accommodations for persons with disabilities. However, the swift shift to telework caused by COVID-19 has highlighted the feasibility and benefits of working from home.

Whether the pandemic normalizes work from home, making it a new reality, or employees return to their offices represents a critical question for persons with disabilities (e.g. Ali et al., 2011). The ability to work from home not only represents a job accommodation in itself, but it also offers numerous career benefits for persons with disabilities. These benefits go beyond improved flexibility and reduced commute time. By working from home, persons with disabilities have an opportunity to take more frequent breaks, remain close to medical equipment and manage unpredictable flareups in their condition. Although some managers have concerns regarding employees’ productivity and reduced monitoring capabilities, research demonstrates that work from home does not have a negative effect on performance; in fact, such flexible arrangements can increase performance (e.g. Choudhury et al., 2021).

Notwithstanding these positives, work from home can have potential downsides for persons with disabilities. Fist, work from home can mean greater social isolation as employees have fewer opportunities for causal chats or impromptu coffee breaks. This social isolation can also be costly in terms of career outcomes. For example, employees with disabilities may have fewer opportunities to foster good-quality relationships with their supervisors, which is crucial for many work-related outcomes (e.g., Lyubykh et al., 2020). Further, employees may miss networking opportunities, or they may not have opportunities to demonstrate their social skills to others. In the long run, an accumulation of such missed opportunities may hinder career advancement of employees working from home.

One way to mitigate such negative consequences is by purposefully providing opportunities for social interactions. For example, managers can budget in “slack time” in work meetings for non-work-related discussions or organize social meetings with breakout rooms for employees.

Working from home can also create an “out of sight, out of mind” situation, resulting in missed opportunities for trainings or promotions, which can hinder career progression for employees with disabilities. This can be particularly problematic when a person with disability is the only one who is working from home. To ensure that managers do not inadvertently disadvantage careers of persons with disabilities who work from home, companies need to develop disability inclusive policies that explicitly include guidelines regarding training, promotion and career development.

Taken together, work from home can represent a path forward for removing employment barriers and ensuring better employment experiences for persons with disabilities. However, this path should be approached with caution. If not managed properly, some aspects of work from home can further disadvantage employees with disabilities.

Zhanna Lyubykh is a PhD student in Organizational Behavior at Haskayne School of Business, University of Calgary. Her research interests lie at the intersection of employee well-being, occupational health and leadership.

References

Ali, M., Schur, L., & Blanck, P. (2011). What types of jobs do people with disabilities want? Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation, 21(2), 199-210.

Choudhury, P., Foroughi, C., & Larson, B. (2021). Work‐from‐anywhere: The productivity effects of geographic flexibility. Strategic Management Journal, 42(4), 655-683.

Fogg, N. P., Harrington, P. E., & McMahon, B. T. (2010). The impact of the Great Recession upon the unemployment of Americans with disabilities. Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation, 33(3), 193-202.

Lyubykh, Z., Ansari, M. A., Williams-Whitt, K., & Kristman, V. L. (2020). Disability severity, leader–member exchange, and attitudinal outcomes: considering the employee and supervisor perspectives. Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation, 1-11.