Compassion towards clients: a scale and test on frontline workers’ burnout

This paper studies frontline workers’ experienced compassion towards clients. The purpose of this study is two-fold. First, it develops a measurement scale for compassion towards clients. Second, it investigates how compassion affects frontline workers and theorizes that compassion may lead to burnout, partly because frontline workers believe that by working overtime to help clients (i.e., coping) adequate services can be provided. Using Structural Equation Modelling (n = 849), this study develops and validates a measurement scale for compassion towards clients with two underlying dimensions: empathic concern and compassionate motivation. These dimensions have opposite effects on a frontline worker’s burnout: while compassionate motivation is negatively related to burnout, empathic concern is positively related to burnout and this effect can be explained because frontline workers work overtime to help clients. The implications for behavioural public policy and administration are discussed.