This chapter presents a knowledge management perspective to propose a pair of structural models to determine the relationship between burnout syndrome (BS) and body mass index (BMI) among high and middle managers of Mexican maquiladoras. In developing countries like Mexico there are opportunities to expand burnout study on diversity of contexts and occupations. The Maslach burnout general inventory questionnaire (MB-GI) was used, and sociodemographic data were collected as well as the weight and size of respondents. Instrument shows an acceptable reliability index. Structural equation models are used to determine relationship among variables. From a sample of 361 people, using segmentations of BMI, two segments are distinguished: normal weight and overweight. Model using normal weight participants shows more explanatory qualities about the relationship among burnout dimensions than the one using overweight participants. One can conclude that more factors and variables are needed to explain overweight Mexican managers.
TopProblem Statement
Two mayor aspects were consider in this research, first, the incidence of stress-related disorders in Mexico is increasing; second, available studies on BS have not provided clear results as regards the relationship between BS and the different BMI levels.
According to a study conducted by the International Labour Organization (ILO, 2016), 40% of Mexican workers – that is, 18.4 million people – suffer from stress, and 75% of such people associate their condition to work-related situations. In this sense, stress can represent between 0.5% and 3.5% of losses in a country’s (Gross Domestic Product) GDP. Additionally, on a world scale, the WHO stated that while cardiovascular diseases were the first cause of death globally, overweight and obesity were two other major causes.
Health disorders affect an individual’s capacity to perform their daily activities, thereby causing low productivity and quality losses, among other repercussions (Forbes, 2011; Marrau, 2009). At the company level, the consequences of health disorders have a negative impact on production costs (Arenas & Cantú, 2013; Gestal, 2003; Juno & Noriega, 2004; Valecillo, M., Quevedo, A.L., Lubo, A., Dos Santos, A., Montiel, M., Camejo, & Sánchez, M., 2009; Kim & Han, 2014).