Frontiers in Business, Economics and Management 
ISSN: 2766-824X | Vol. 11, No. 1, 2023 

 

211 

Study	on	the	Relationship	Between	Professional	
Commitment	and	Learning	Burnout	of	Undergraduates	
Majoring	in	Public	Administration	
Tong Xiao 

Yantai Institute of China Agricultural University, Yantai Shandong Province 264670, China 

 

Abstract: In order to understand the relationship between professional commitment and learning burnout of undergraduates 
majoring in public utilities management, the students majoring in public utilities management in C University were coded, and 
100 undergraduates with different gender, household registration and classes were randomly selected to distribute scales, and 97 
valid scales were collected. Descriptive statistics, one-dimensional linear regression model and multiple linear regression model 
were used for empirical research. The results show that the emotional commitment factor in professional commitment has a 
significant impact on the degree of learning burnout. By studying the relationship between professional commitment and learning 
burnout of undergraduates majoring in public utilities management, this study aims to help students establish a correct 
professional concept, enhance their professional identity and reduce their learning burnout. And put forward some suggestions 
for the development of public utilities management specialty to cope with the development crisis of public utilities management 
specialty. 

Keywords: Public Administration, Professional commitment, Learning burnout. 
 

1. Introduction 
The major of public utilities management belongs to the 

discipline of public administration, and it is a new major with 
multi-disciplinary integration. It mainly trains high-quality 
compound public management talents for public departments 
such as party and government organs, institutions and non-
governmental organizations. The major of public utilities 
management in colleges and universities in China started late 
and developed rapidly. However, some college teachers 
pointed out that the major of public utilities management was 
vague, the core competitiveness of courses was not strong, 
and the employment direction of students was vague. Some 
opinions of the Ministry of Education on improving the 
quality of higher education in an all-round way and opinions 
of the Ministry of Education on deepening the teaching 
reform of undergraduate education and improving the quality 
of personnel training in an all-round way emphasize that it is 
necessary to firmly establish the central position of personnel 
training and establish a scientific concept of higher education 
development; Guided by the needs of economic and social 
development and students' career development, we will 
deepen the supply-side reform of colleges and universities. In 
recent years, the major of public utilities management is 
facing the dilemma and crisis of large-scale cancellation. 

At the same time, undergraduates majoring in public 
utilities management in colleges and universities generally 
have problems such as low interest in learning professional 
knowledge and low degree of professional identity, which 
shows the characteristics of bad learning behavior such as 
truancy, lateness, leaving early and low learning efficiency, 
which affects the quality of professional teaching. Studying 
the relationship between professional commitment and 
learning burnout of undergraduates majoring in public 
utilities management is not only conducive to guiding 
students to establish a correct learning concept and 
professional concept, enhancing professional identity and 

reducing the degree of learning burnout; But also provides a 
new perspective for solving the bottleneck of the development 

of public utilities management specialty.｡ 

2. Literature Review 

2.1. Concept 
Learning burnout: The concept of learning burnout is 

extended from the study of job burnout. Learning burnout 
refers to the negative state of students' depressed mood, 
behavior avoidance and low sense of accomplishment due to 
lack of interest in learning or academic pressure. 

Professional commitment: Professional commitment refers 
to the positive attitude and behavior of college students who 
agree with their major and are willing to make corresponding 
efforts, including four dimensions: emotional commitment, 
ideal commitment, continuing commitment and normative 
commitment. 

2.2. Correlation research 
Professional commitment and learning burnout are two 

important indicators reflecting students' learning psychology. 
According to the research, professional commitment is one of 
the main factors that affect the degree of learning burnout. 

Scholars at home and abroad generally believe that there is 
a significant negative correlation between learning burnout 
and professional commitment, that is, the higher the level of 
professional commitment, the less students will show 
learning burnout[3]. Yang Lixian, Lian Rong (2006) and 
others have studied the relationship between learning burnout 
and professional commitment, and the results show that there 
is a negative correlation between them. In regression analysis, 
emotional commitment has the highest influence index on 
learning burnout and its dimensions, which shows that college 
students' love of majors affects their learning burnout level[1]. 
Duan Lusheng and Li Yongxin (2008) introduced the variable 
of learning engagement to study the relationship among 



 

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college students' professional commitment, learning burnout 
and learning engagement. The results show that there is a 
significant positive correlation between learning engagement 
and professional commitment, and a significant negative 
correlation between learning burnout. The dimensions of 
learning burnout and professional commitment have a 
significant predictive effect on learning engagement[2]. Chen 
Rui (2011) concluded that emotional commitment is the most 
important predictor of college students' learning burnout after 
studying the correlation among college students' learning 
burnout, professional commitment and test anxiety. Test 
anxiety is the second most important predictor of depression 
and low sense of accomplishment[4]. Chen Jiasheng (2011) 
pointed out that professional commitment, especially 
emotional commitment, can effectively predict the learning 
burnout of newly-promoted college students after studying 
the learning burnout and professional commitment of 
freshmen[5]. 

At present, the research on the relationship between 
professional commitment and learning burnout focuses on 
college students in professional universities (such as medical 
students, normal students, physical education students, etc.), 
and takes demographic variables as the main variables to 
study the status quo of learning burnout and professional 
commitment of different gender, grade, major, college and 
other college students. 

2.3. Literature basis 
At present, the research on learning burnout and 

professional commitment at home and abroad is mainly 
empirical research, and the research content is gradually 
enriched, but there is still room for development. First of all, 
the definition of learning burnout and the quantification of 
learning burnout are too dependent on the existing research 
results of "job burnout". Secondly, there are few measuring 
tools for learning burnout and professional commitment 
according to China's national conditions. Professor Lian 
Rong's learning burnout and professional commitment scale 

is widely recognized in China, but the theory follows the 
three-factor model, and the scale has not been tested for 
validity and has not been revised for more than ten years, so 
its validity is difficult to guarantee[6]. Finally, at present, the 
academic research on the relationship between professional 
commitment and learning burnout mainly focuses on the 
students of professional universities, such as medical students, 
normal students and physical education students, but lacks the 
research on the students of comprehensive universities, and 
there are still gaps in the related research on the 
undergraduates majoring in public administration. 

3. Research Design 

3.1. Data source 
In this study, the data of quantitative research were 

collected through questionnaires. Taking the students 
majoring in public utilities management in C University as the 
scope of questionnaire survey, the analysis unit is individual. 

The study adopts the sampling method of simple random 
sampling. The sampling unit is 133 students in four classes of 
public utilities management major in C University. They are 
numbered from 1 to 133, and 100 numbers are extracted by 
using random number table software, and self-administered 
questionnaires are distributed to students with corresponding 
numbers. A total of 100 questionnaires were distributed, and 
97 questionnaires were actually recovered. 97 valid samples 
were investigated, including 32 boys, accounting for 32%; 
There are 65 girls, accounting for 65%. The urban population 
is 63, accounting for 64.95%; The rural population is 34, 
accounting for 35.05%. There are 23 students in Class A, 22 
students in Class B, 28 students in Class C and 24 students in 
Class D, accounting for 23.71%, 22.68%, 28.87% and 24.74% 
of the total sample respectively. The top 20% of the majors 
are 21 students, 25 students with 21%-40%, 16 students with 
41%-60%, 20 students with 61%-80%, and 15 students with 
81% or below, accounting for 21.65%, 25.77%, 16.49% and 
20 respectively. 

 
Table 1. Sample basic situation table 

 Feature People Percentage 

Gender 
Male 32 32% 

Female 65 65% 
Total 97 100% 

Household registration 
City 63 64.95% 

Village 34 35.05% 
Total 97 100% 

Classes 

A class 23 23.71% 
B class 22 22.68% 
C class 28 28.87% 
D class 24 24.74% 
Total 97 100% 

Rank 

1%-20% 21 21.65% 
21%-40% 25 25.77% 
41%-60% 16 16.49% 
61%-80% 20 20.62% 

81%-100% 15 15.46% 
Total 97 100% 

 

3.2. Index selection and analysis method 
In the research part, the study burnout scale for college 

students compiled by Yang Lixian and the professional 
commitment scale for college students compiled by Wu 

Lanhua were selected to operationalize the concept of study 
burnout and divide it into three dimensions: depression, 
improper behavior and low sense of accomplishment. The 
scale adopts Likert five-level self-rating scale, from 
"incomplete conformity" to "complete conformity" with five-



 

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level integral system. In terms of depression, improper 
behavior and low sense of accomplishment, the higher the 
score, the higher the degree of burnout; The lower the score, 
the weaker the burnout. The study divides professional 
commitment into four dimensions: emotional commitment, 
ideal commitment, normative commitment and continuing 
commitment. The higher the score in the four dimensions, the 
stronger the professional commitment. 

 
Table 2. Reliability test table 

Sample Number Cronbach. 
97 13 0.792 

 
As shown in Table 2, the internal consistency reliability 

coefficient of the scale used in this study is 0.792, and the 
scale has high reliability and good stability. 

 
Table 3. Validity test form (KMO and Bartlett test) 

Kaiser-Meyer-
Olkin 

Bartlett 
Chi-

Squared 
df Sig. 

0.798 1642.101 351 0 
 

As shown in Table 3, KMO value =0.772, which is between 
0.7 and 0.8, indicating good validity. 

Statistical analysis uses SPSS27.0 software for data 
analysis and descriptive statistics for related variables; This 
paper makes an empirical analysis on the influence of 
professional commitment on learning burnout of 
undergraduates majoring in public utilities management by 
using monistic linear model and multivariate linear model. 

4. Research Results 

4.1. There is no significant correlation between 
learning burnout and professional 
commitment and regression. 

4.1.1. Correlation Analysis of Learning Burnout 
Dimensions and Professional Commitment Factors 

In order to explore the relationship between learning 
burnout and professional commitment of students majoring in 
public utilities management in C University, this study first 
analyzes the correlation between various dimensions of 
learning burnout and various factors of professional 
commitment, and obtains Pearson correlation coefficient. The 
results are shown in Table 4. 

 
Table 4. Correlation Analysis of Learning Burnout and Professional Commitment 

 Emotional Ideal Continue Normative 
Down 
spirits 

Misconduct 
Low 
sense 

Professional 
commitment 

Learning 
burnout 

Emotional 1         
Ideal .777** 1        

Continue .551** .645** 1       
Normative .597** .685** .596** 1      

Down spirits -.276** -.229* 0.032 0.001 1     
Misconduct -.250* -0.09 -0.013 -0.006 .539** 1    
Low sense -.272** -.232* 0.009 -0.122 .536** .399** 1   

Professional 
commitment 

.870** .916** .783** .847** -0.153 -0.113 -0.196 1  

Learning 
burnout 

-.326** -.222* 0.011 -0.046 .861** .811** .765** -0.186 1 

Note: * *. Significant correlation at 0.01 level (bilateral). 
*. Significant correlation at 0.05 level (bilateral). 

 

As can be seen from Table 4, the four factors of 
professional commitment have a strong statistical correlation, 
and the three dimensions of learning burnout also have a 
strong statistical correlation. However, the correlation 
between professional commitment and learning burnout did 
not reach a significant level (p=0.069), r=-0.186. 

From the four factors of professional commitment, the 
average score of learning burnout is negatively correlated 
with emotional commitment and normative commitment, and 
the correlation coefficients are -0.326 and -0.222, respectively, 
which shows that emotional commitment and ideal 
commitment in professional commitment have a significant 
impact on learning burnout among students majoring in 
public administration in C University. Depression is 
negatively correlated with emotional commitment and ideal 

commitment, improper behavior is negatively correlated with 
emotional commitment, and low sense of accomplishment is 
negatively correlated with emotional commitment and ideal 
commitment. 

4.1.2. 4.1.2 A Linear Regression Analysis of Professional 
Commitment and Learning Burnout 

The results of correlation analysis show that there is a 
statistically significant correlation between professional 
commitment and learning burnout. In order to carry out the 
next research, the average learning burnout is divided into 
dependent variables (represented by Y) and the average 
professional commitment is divided into independent 
variables (represented by X) for regression analysis. 

 
Table 5. Regression Model Test of Professional Commitment on Learning Burnout (N=97) 

Model  Sum of square df Mean square F Sig. 
1 Return 1.612 1 1.612 3.386 .069a 
 residual 45.226 95 0.476   
 Total sum 46.838 96    

Regression note: R=0.186, adjusted r square =0.024. 



 

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A. Predicted variable: (constant), average score of 

professional commitment 
B. Dependent variable: average score of learning burnout 
As shown in Table 5, with professional commitment as the 

independent variable and learning burnout as the dependent 
variable, the univariate linear regression analysis is made, 
sig.=0.069>0.05, so the regression equation of professional 
commitment to learning burnout of students majoring in 
public administration in C University is not statistically 

significant. 

4.2. Emotional commitment has a significant 
impact on learning burnout. 

Taking the factors of professional commitment as 
independent variables and learning burnout as dependent 
variables, multiple linear regression was carried out by using 
the method of all forced inclusion. 

 
Table 6. Prediction Model of Professional Commitment on Learning Burnout 

 Change statistics 
 R R2 Adjust R2 Error of SE R2 F df1 df2 Sig.  F 
 0.420a 0.177 0.141 0.647 0.177 4.935 4 92 0.001 

Note: A. Predicted variables: (constant), normative commitment, continuing commitment, emotional commitment and 
rational commitment. B. Dependent variable: total score of learning burnout 

 
Table 7. Multiple Regression Model Test of Professional Commitment on Learning Burnout (N=97) 

Model  Sum of square df Mean square F Sig. 
1 Return 8.275 4 2.069 4.935 0.001a 
 residual 38.563 92 0.419   
 Total sum 46.838 96    

Note: p=0.001, R=0.420, R =0.177. 
 

A. Predicted variables: (constant), normative commitment, continuing commitment, emotional commitment and ideal 
commitment. 

B. Dependent variable: average score of learning burnout 
 

The test results of regression model are shown in Table 7, 
which shows that the regression equation is reliable and can 

be established. 

 
Table 8. Regression Analysis of Professional Commitment and Learning Burnout 

Model Variable B SE Standard 
coefficient 

t Sig. 

1 Constant 2.594 0.3  8.639 0 
 Emotional -0.321 0.109 -0.449 -2.947 0.004 
 Ideal -0.119 0.129 -0.162 -0.926 0.357 
 Continue 0.266 0.135 0.255 1.975 0.051 
 Normative 0.134 0.101 0.181 1.328 0.187 

Note: A. Dependent variable: average score of learning burnout 
 

The results in Table 8 show that the constant term t=8.639, 
sig.=0.000<0.001, which shows that the constant term 
coefficient of the multivariate regression equation is 
meaningful. Because the coefficient sig.>0.05 of ideal 
commitment, continuing commitment and normative 
commitment, these three factors cannot enter the multiple 
regression equation, but emotional commitment factor can 
enter the regression equation. The standardized regression 
equation of the model is obtained from the above statistical 
results:  
 Learning burnout 2.594 0.321 Emotional commitment 

( 𝑝 0.000       ( 𝑝 0.004  
From the above regression equation, we can know that the 

learning burnout will decrease by 0.321 units for each unit of 
emotional commitment of the sample. 

4.3. Emotional commitment can predict all 
dimensions of learning burnout. 

Table 9 shows the regression analysis of each factor of 
professional commitment to each dimension of learning 
burnout. 

 
Table 9. Stepwise regression analysis of the factors of professional commitment on the dimensions of learning burnout 

Dependent 
variable 

Independent 
variable 

Non-standardized 
coefficient Beta 

T Sig. T VIF 
Adjust 

R2 
F Sig. F 

Down 
spirits 

Emotional -0.394 -3.653 0 1.436 0.107 6.729 0.002** 
Continue 0.361 2.293 0.024     

Misconduct Emotional -0.232 -2.512 0.014 1.000 0.052 6.311 0.014* 
Low sense Emotional -0.21 -2.752 0.007 1.000 0.064 7.571 0.007** 

Note: * sig < 0.05; **Sig.<0.01; ***Sig.<0.001 



 

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Table 9 shows that emotional commitment and continuing 

commitment have a significant impact on the depression of 
students majoring in public utilities management in 
University C; Emotional commitment can predict students' 
improper behavior and low sense of accomplishment; 
Emotional commitment can greatly predict students' low 
sense of accomplishment. 

4.4. Analysis 
Taking the students majoring in public administration in C 

University as subjects, there is no significant correlation and 
linear regression between professional commitment and 
learning burnout, which is different from the previous 
research results in academic circles. However, the 
significance of 0.069 is close to the standard of 0.05. 
Emotional commitment in professional commitment has a 
significant negative correlation and regression relationship 
with the average score of learning burnout and all factors. 
Ideal commitment has a significant impact on depression and 
low sense of accomplishment, and continuing commitment 
will affect the variables of depression. Emotional 
commitment and continuing commitment can explain 
learning burnout to some extent in gradual regression. 
Therefore, this paper agrees with the way to reduce the level 
of learning burnout by improving the level of professional 
commitment. 

At the same time, the results of multiple regression analysis 
show that emotional commitment and continuing 
commitment are effective predictors of learning burnout of 
students majoring in public administration in C University, 
and emotional commitment has the highest explanatory 
capacity in the whole model. If we can cultivate the public 
spirit of college students majoring in public utilities 
management, help them to establish correct professional 
concepts and understand professional values, and thus 
improve their interest in learning, then we can greatly reduce 
their learning burnout. 

5. Suggestion 

5.1. University level 
Colleges and universities should hold a scientific, 

responsible and rational attitude and methods to implement 
the construction of public utilities management specialty, and 
actively explore ways and methods to improve the 
professional development level. 

Colleges and universities should strengthen practical 
teaching of public administration major, add practical 
education courses of public administration major, construct 
three-dimensional teaching mode, help students understand 
and understand the working nature of government agencies, 
institutions and non-profit organizations through social 
practice and internship, explore the value and significance of 
public administration major, and cultivate practical talents of 
public administration; Curriculum ideological and political 
reform should be carried out to effectively integrate the 
teaching of public utilities management with curriculum 
ideological and political education, promote the formation of 
professional values and improve students' professional 
commitment level. At the same time, colleges and universities 
should take the needs of economic and social development 
and students' career development as the guide, deepen the 
supply-side reform of public utilities management specialty, 

improve the student training program, and screen the 
repetitive, tedious and vague course content; We should make 
use of our own superior resources to formulate and implement 
effective employment policies for graduates, positively guide 
the fresh graduates to pay attention to their personal 
development, make a good career plan, and locate the 
employment direction, so as to help students find jobs while 
meeting social needs and improve the professional 
recognition of colleges and universities in the industry. 

5.2. Teachers level 
Teachers improve teaching quality by optimizing teaching 

content, optimizing course assessment methods and 
improving their own quality, so as to help students love 
learning professional knowledge and realize the value of 
learning and the fun of innovation. Teachers in colleges and 
universities should lay a solid theoretical foundation, 
combine the laws of students' physical and mental 
development and cognitive level, and appropriately extend 
the teaching content in depth and width; Enrich and update 
the teaching case base; Strengthen applied and practical 
courses to improve students' professional ability and 
emotional commitment. According to the teaching experience, 
college teachers can optimize and adjust the course evaluation 
system of public utilities management major, such as setting 
the degree of examination questions and setting different 
homework weights, so as to build a reasonable evaluation 
system for the development of teaching objectives and 
prevent the phenomenon of putting the cart before the horse, 
which leads students to memorize textbook knowledge with 
high scores instead of flexible operation. At the same time, 
teachers should adhere to the concept of lifelong learning, 
constantly improve their knowledge level, keep pace with the 
times, and conform to the requirements of the times and the 
construction of public utilities management disciplines. 

5.3. Student level 
Education should be people-oriented and student-oriented. 

As the main object of higher education, undergraduates 
should start from themselves, mobilize their enthusiasm, 
change their learning concepts and improve their emotional 
commitment. 

Undergraduate students majoring in public utilities 
management should establish practical learning goals, and 
students can get positive feedback through the realization of 
the goals, gradually find their own learning methods and 
strategies, and gradually realize the value of knowledge, the 
fun of learning and the sense of accomplishment; We should 
establish a correct view of learning, think rationally about the 
significance of learning, resist the influence of learning 
utilitarianism, get to know the public sector in the process of 
learning theoretical knowledge and conducting practical 
research activities, realize the important significance of public 
utility management specialty to national development and 
social progress, deepen professional identity and cultivate the 
spirit of public service; We should cultivate learning interest, 
adjust learning attitude in time, look at the history and future 
development of the discipline from an objective and 
dialectical point of view, and gradually form correct 
professional values on the basis of fully understanding the 
majors we have studied; We should do a good job in career 
planning, improve professional quality and core 
competitiveness with employment as the guidance, and strive 



 

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to become a compound and applied public management 
professional for the purpose of meeting social needs. 

5.4. Social level 
The cancellation of the major of public utilities 

management does not mean that the public departments such 
as administrative organs, social organizations and non-profit 
organizations have little demand for public management 
talents, and there is an imbalance between the supply of 
colleges and universities and the social demand; On the 
contrary, under the background of government transformation, 
the society needs compound and applied public utility 
management professionals to provide public services. At 
present, the social recognition and social influence of public 
utilities management major are low, and some employers lack 
the understanding of public utilities management major and 
the feelings of students' professional quality[7], and even 
have doubts and prejudices about this major under the 
influence of public opinion. Therefore, the government and 
enterprises should establish effective communication and 
cooperation mechanisms with universities, communicate 
directly with university teachers and students through school-
enterprise cooperation and construction of practice bases, so 
as to understand the value and significance of the major of 
public administration, enhance the social recognition of 
students majoring in public administration, enhance the social 
influence of the major, and open up employment channels for 
graduates majoring in public administration, thus realizing 
the situation of resource sharing, information exchange and 
win-win cooperation[8]. 

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[3] Zhang Maolin. Study on the current situation of learning 
burnout of normal students in special education and its 
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[4] Chen Rui. Study on the correlation among college students' 
learning burnout, professional commitment and test anxiety. 
Journal of Nanchang Institute of Education, 2011 (06): 124-126. 

[5] Chen Jiasheng. The relationship between learning burnout and 
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[7] Zheng Dailiang. Crisis and prospect of the development of 
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