Social Support and Psychological Well-Being in Relation to Burnout among Postgraduate University Students

Abstract

This study examined the relationships among perceived social support, psychological well-being, and burnout among postgraduate university students. A quantitative cross-sectional design was used with 300 postgraduate students from educational institutions in Faisalabad, Pakistan, recruited through convenience sampling. Perceived social support was assessed using the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, psychological well-being using Ryff's Psychological Well-Being Scale, and burnout using the burnout measure reported in the thesis. Data were analyzed in SPSS version 27 using descriptive statistics, Cronbach's alpha, Pearson correlations, simple linear regression, and an independent-samples t test. Perceived social support was positively associated with psychological well-being (r = .93, p < .01) and negatively associated with burnout (r = -.12, p < .05). Psychological well-being was also negatively associated with burnout (r = -.14, p < .05). Social support negatively predicted burnout (β = -.129, p = .02, R² = .01), while psychological well-being negatively predicted burnout (β = -.145, p = .01, R² = .02). Gender differences were not statistically significant for social support, psychological well-being, or burnout. The findings suggest that supportive interpersonal environments and positive psychological functioning may be relevant protective factors against burnout among postgraduate students. Because the thesis contains an internally inconsistent mediation section, that analysis is not used as a confirmatory finding in this manuscript and should be re-run from the original dataset before journal submission.