"Nobody's paying me to cry": the causes of activist burnout in United States animal rights activists. (4th May 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Gorski, Paul; Lopresti-Goodman, Stacy; Rising, Dallas
• Is Part Of: Social movement studies. Volume 18:Number 3(2019)
• Page Start: 364
• Page End: 380
• Publication Date: 2019-05-04
• Subjects: Animal rights -- burnout -- activism -- activists -- social movements; Social movements -- Periodicals; Collective behavior -- Periodicals; Culture -- Philosophy -- Periodicals; 303.6
• DOI: 10.1080/14742837.2018.1561260
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1474-2837

Abstract

ABSTRACT: We examine the causes of activist burnout – a condition in which the accumulative stress associated with activism becomes so debilitating that once-committed activists are forced to scale back on or disengage from their activism – in 17 United States animal rights activists. Following a phenomenological qualitative approach, analysis of interview data revealed three primary categories of burnout causes: 1) intrinsic motivational and psychological factors, 2) organizational and movement culture, and 3) within-movement in-fighting and marginalization. Implications for understandings of activist burnout and the AR movement are discussed.