This paper presents an attempt toward the validation of the Italian version of the Copenaghen Burnout Inventory (CBI), developed by Kristensen and colleagues (2005).

Even though the Maslach Burnout Inventory – MBI (Maslach & Jackson, 1981), is the most commonly used instrument for measuring burnout (Schaufeli and Enzmann, 1998; Hanebuth et al., 2012), several criticisms raised to this matter. The most criticized aspect of the MBI is its dimensionality (Avanzi et al., 2013). In fact, while Maslach and colleagues refer to burnout as a syndrome of emotional exhaustion, reduced personal accomplishment and depersonalization (Maslach & Jackson, 1981), others (see Shirom, 2005) have pointed out that emotional exhaustion should be the sole dimension of burnout, while the other two should rather be considered as consequences or coping strategies related to it.

Starting from this assumption, Kristensen and colleagues (2005) developed the English version of the Copenaghen Burnout Inventory, in which “the core of burnout is fatigue and exhaustion” (Kristensen et al., 2005, p. 196). The development of CBI stems from the idea that burnout can be basically defined as a syndrome of emotional exhaustion, or, better, “a state of physical, emotional and mental exhaustion that results from long-term involvement in work situations that are emotionally demanding” (Schaufeli & Greenglass, 2001, p. 501).

The CBI is a questionnaire composed by three subscales, each one measuring a sub-dimension of the burnout, namely: the personal burnout, the work-related burnout, and the client-related burnout.

At the basis of this conceptualization, there is the assumption that when reporting their experiences, people go through a process of “attribution of fatigue and exhaustion to specific domains or spheres in the person’s life. One such domain is work and a more specific domain is client work” (Kristensen et al., 2005, p. 197). Hence, if personal burnout can be defined as the degree of physical and psychological exhaustion, the other two are the degree of this exhaustion perceived by the person as related to his/her work and to working with clients.

Canton Ticino is a State of the Swiss Confederation located in Southern Switzerland. The official language of Canton Ticino is Italian, which is spoken by the majority of resident population. Although for research purposes several instruments have been developed in Italy, scales developed and/or validated in the specific social and cultural context of Canton Ticino are generally lacking.

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