Relationship between burnout and depressive symptoms: A study using the person-centred approach

• Burnout and depressive symptoms cluster together.
• Burnout and depressive symptoms develop in tandem.
• Burnout and depression clusters and trajectories reflect the work conditions.

We applied a person-centred approach to study the relationship between burnout and depressive symptoms at baseline and over seven years. We examined how the symptom clusters and trajectories are related to the baseline sociodemographic and psychosocial work characteristics. At baseline, burnout and depressive symptoms clustered into three groups: low, intermediate, and high level of symptoms. Four developmental trajectories – low, high, increasing and decreasing symptoms – emerged in the longitudinal analysis. The psychosocial work characteristics were reflected in the level and development of the symptoms. The results support the conceptual similarity between burnout and depressive symptoms in the work context.