Call for Participation: Study on Compassion Fatigue in HE Academic Staff

Funded by Warwick International Higher Education AcademyLink opens in a new window (WIHEA), the Compassionate Pedagogy Learning Circle Link opens in a new windowwould like to invite UK academics who have student-facing roles to participate in a study on compassion fatigue. Compassion fatigue is a state of emotional and physical exhaustion resulting from prolonged exposure to others' suffering. We are interested in exploring compassion fatigue in UK academic staff as part of their role in providing pastoral care and support to their students.

Common symptoms of compassion fatigue include reduced feelings of empathy and sympathy, feeling helpless/powerless, feeling overwhelmed and exhausted by work demands, feeling detached, numb and emotionally disconnected, increased anxiety, sadness, anger and irritability, difficulty concentrating and making decisions, including physical symptoms such as headaches, upset stomach and sleep disturbance.

Purpose: This study aims to explore the experience of compassion fatigue in HE academic staff in order to highlight and communicate HE staff experiences with a view to raising awareness and empowering HE institutions to implement effective support strategies to promote best practice related to compassion fatigue within the HE sector.

Who Can Participate:

• Academics from all disciplines, employed at a UK Higher Education Institution with experience of compassion fatigue. Please note: academics from the department of Psychology at the University of Warwick are not eligible to take part as the research assistant is from the same department.
• Academics who have a student-facing role (e.g. personal tutor, senior tutor, module convenor, supervisor etc.)
• Full-time and part-time staff members, and those on fixed-term contracts

What to Expect:

You will be invited to take part in a semi-structured interview asking about your experience of compassion fatigue as part of your role in providing pastoral care and support to your students. Interviews should take no more than 1 hour and will be conducted online via MS Teams.

How to Participate:

If you are interested in taking part or would like more information, please contact Emma.Turton@warwick.ac.uk (Project Officer).

Your support in helping to share the call and the information above with your network, both within and beyond the University of Warwick, would be very appreciated.