Digital Solutions for Burnout: The Effectiveness of Digital Wellbeing for Junior High School Guidance Counselors in Singkawang City

Abstract

This study investigated the effectiveness of a digital wellbeing intervention in reducing burnout among junior high school guidance counselors in Singkawang City, Indonesia. Given the increasing digital demands of educational work and the prevalence of counselor burnout, the research aimed to evaluate whether structured digital wellbeing training could enhance emotional resilience and professional fulfillment. A quasi-experimental design with a non-equivalent pretest–posttest control group was employed. The sample comprised 70 guidance counselors, divided equally into experimental and control groups. The four-week intervention integrated psychoeducational and reflective digital wellbeing modules, focusing on balanced technology use, emotional regulation, and digital self-care. Data were collected using the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) and analyzed with paired and independent samples t-tests through SPSS software. Findings revealed a significant reduction in burnout among the experimental group (p < 0.001), particularly in emotional exhaustion and depersonalization, alongside an increase in personal accomplishment. The intervention demonstrated a large effect size (Cohen’s d = 0.87–1.04). The study concludes that digital wellbeing interventions are effective, practical, and scalable tools for mitigating counselor burnout in educational contexts. The findings contribute to both theory and practice by positioning digital wellbeing as a key dimension of teacher and counselor development. Future research is encouraged to explore long-term outcomes and broader implementation across different educational settings