In the context of growing social instability and increasing parental responsibilities, the risk of
developing emotional burnout syndrome rises among various categories of parents. A comparative
analysis of biological parents and foster parents performing a professional parental role in
institutional settings, such as SOS Children’s Villages, becomes particularly relevant.
Objective: To compare the characteristics of emotional burnout syndrome in SOS Village foster
parents and biological parents, taking into account factors such as parental stress and satisfaction
with the parental role.
Methods: The Parental Stress Scale, the Parental Burnout Inventory, the Perceived Stress Scale
(PSS-10), and the Basic Psychological Needs Satisfaction Scale were used. Statistical data analysis
was conducted using the Mann–Whitney U test in the SPSS software package.
Results: Biological parents reported higher levels of emotional exhaustion and perceived stress,
while foster parents more frequently demonstrated a reduction in parental accomplishment. At the
same time, levels of parental role satisfaction were comparable in both groups. Foster parents also
showed higher satisfaction of the need for autonomy.
Practical significance: The findings underscore the need to develop specialized support programs
for both categories of parents, taking into account the differences in their emotional and social
burdens