Sponsor
Hatfield School of Government. Public Affairs and Policy Ph. D. Program
First Advisor
Billie Sandberg
Term of Graduation
Spring 2026
Date of Publication
6-4-2026
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Public Affairs and Policy
Department
Public Affairs and Policy
Language
English
Subjects
Burnout, Human Service Employees, Marketization, Neoliberalism, Nonprofit
Physical Description
1 online resource (x, 281 pages)
Abstract
Despite decades of study, academics and practitioners are still limited in their ability to mitigate and treat burnout in nonprofit employees. The prevalence of this problem may persist because the nonprofit sector is operating with an incomplete understanding of burnout. Dominant models frequently account for individual and organizational level causes of burnout but often fail to consider the wider systemic environment that nonprofits operate within. Through an Open Systems Theory framework, this study set out to research the association between one such systemic influence, the neoliberal marketization of the nonprofit sector, with frontline worker burnout in order to demonstrate the necessity of expanding the scope of burnout models.
A critical case study of a behavioral health nonprofit provided an opportunity to study employee perspectives in a setting that was likely to have marketized elements. The data set for this study included an employee survey with over 500 respondents and a set of 73 organizational documents. Factor analysis was conducted on a variety of inventories known to influence burnout, along with a marketization inventory piloted for this study, to develop independent variables for linear regression models. Coding and analysis of the organizational documents supported the findings of the regression models.
Of the four facets of marketization, the findings of this study suggest an association between the Entrepreneurialism and Technologies of Performance facets and burnout for employees that work with clients. The other two facets of marketization were not found to have significance with burnout for any employees. The findings of this study justify the premise that systemic effects, specifically marketization, may have an influence on worker burnout. The positive findings of this study suggest that future research into systemic effects may help complete our understanding of employee burnout.
Rights
© 2026 Carl Lindley Christiansen
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Persistent Identifier
https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/44978
Recommended Citation
Christiansen, Carl Lindley, "Exploring the Association Between Neoliberal Marketization and Employee Burnout in a Behavioral Health Nonprofit" (2026). Dissertations and Theses. Paper 7153.