What factor, related to personal agency, amplifies the physical and emotional symptoms of burnout dramatically?

Feeling that individuals have little control over their workload, schedule, or the final outcomes of their efforts.

A critical element in diagnosing burnout, especially when clustered with the five core symptoms, involves assessing the individual's sense of control over their working environment and outputs. Burnout thrives significantly in environments where individuals perceive themselves as lacking agency—meaning they feel they have minimal influence over how their workload is structured, when tasks must be completed, or what the final results of their efforts will be. When an individual feels trapped or believes that immense effort will not be sufficient to meet imposed expectations, this perception of lacking control severely magnifies the intensity of both the emotional exhaustion and the associated physical manifestations, pushing the system closer to crisis.