The impact of burnout on turnover intention among Chinese general practitioners: The mediating effect of job satisfaction and the moderating effect of professional identity

Background: Turnover among general practitioners (GPs) has become a significant public health concern worldwide. Aims: This study aimed to investigate the interrelationships between job satisfaction, professional identity, burnout, and turnover intention among GPs in China and to assess the mediating effect of job satisfaction on the association between burnout and turnover intention and the moderating effect of professional identity on the association between burnout and job satisfaction. Method: A cross-sectional study was conducted to collect data from 3,236 GPs in eastern, central, and western China between October 2017 and February 2018 using a self-administered questionnaire. Pearson’s correlation analysis and hierarchical regression were used to identify the relationships between job satisfaction, professional identity, burnout, and turnover intention among Chinese GPs. Results: Among these respondents, 65.02% reported a medium or high level of emotional exhaustion (EE), 35.38% reported a moderate or high level of depersonalization (DP), and 62.05% reported reduced personal achievement (PA). Overall, 71.08% of GPs expressed a relatively high intention to seek another position (turnover intention). We found all 3 dimensions of burnout contributed to job dissatisfaction while turnover intention arising from burnout was associated with EE and DP. Job satisfaction had a direct negative impact on turnover intention and partially mediated the impact of EE and DP on turnover intention. Professional identity played a partial moderated role between EE and job satisfaction. Conclusions: The prevalence of burnout and turnover intention among GPs is high in China. The effect of EE and DP on turnover intention is mediated by job satisfaction, and the effect of EE on job satisfaction is moderated by professional identity.