Beyond the brink: STEM women and resourceful sensemaking after burnout

Abstract

SummaryThis paper attends to the burnout recovery experiences of women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and qualitatively explores how these individuals renegotiate, reorient, and recalibrate their work trajectories after burnout; an ambiguous and shocking event that has been shown to cause lingering disruption for both individuals and organizations (Salvagioni et al., 2017). We bring together conservation of resources (COR) theory and a sensemaking approach, illustrating how attention to sensemaking reveals the dynamics of resource allocation during times of disruption and loss; that is, the relational negotiation of protecting, investing, and fostering resources, including and importantly to burnout, a recognizable sense of recovery. Our rich qualitative analysis and findings reveal three sensemaking plotlines (Combative, Regenerative, and Promissory) through which rituals of resource management take place. Insights from this study provide a theoretical exposition for the post‐burnout experience, illuminating the black box between burnout and recovery. We present a number of theoretical and practical contributions in developing the scholarly vistas surrounding (post‐)burnout studies and STEM careers that better conceptualize (i) how marginalized members in highly instituted settings experience the aftermath of burnout and (ii) the broader implications this has for the sustainability of workforces.

STEMming the tide: New perspectives on careers and turnover

“…The findings go beyond previous research to demonstrate how reluctant staying is undesirable not only because it diminishes one's own performance (Holtom et al, 2020) but also because it may be detrimental to the performance of other employees who may be dependent on a reluctant stayer. Lee and Riach (2024) bring us back to STEM with their qualitative exploration of the recovery experiences of women who experienced burnout in their STEM career. Their study addresses a central issue in the "leaky" STEM pipeline, namely, the disproportionate turnover of women, but fundamentally shifts the focus in a thus far overlooked direction-namely, one that recognizes how particularities of the STEM social context (e.g., "chilly" climates, discrimination, socialnetwork exclusions) make burnout a more likely experience for women.…”