Aim: This thesis is a qualitative study examining a possible understanding of burnout among two danish music therapists. More specifically, this study aims to explore and describe the essence of the two music therapists’ views and perspectives about experiencing burnout. The purpose of this is to unfold and understand different aspects of burnout and highlight the many different nuances within this topic.

Background: Burnout syndrome is a well-known phenomenon within healthcare practices, and literature about music therapists and burnout describes music therapists as facing an average amount of risk for experiencing this. As of yet, there have been no studies investigating burnout among danish music therapists. Since the aim of this study is to understand the experiences of burnout, it does not seek to examine the occurrence of burnout among danish music therapists - it is assumed - as there is research about burnout and music therapists in other countries, it must also be present in Denmark.

Method: In pursuit of answering the research question, this thesis is epistemologically based on a transcendental phenomenological inquiry where the aim is to find and describe the essence of the data. Empiricism is collected through two semi-structured interviews and analysed using thematic coding.

Results: The findings in this study reveal that the two respondents have very different experiences and perspectives regarding burnout, but through the analysis eight common main themes emerged: 1) Causes of burnout, 2) working conditions, 3) meeting the client, 4) handling burnout, 5) consequences during and after burnout, 6) the importance of music, 7) perceptions after burnout 8) advice and reflections. It is not possible to conclude something overall about burnout among danish music therapists, but the eight common themes cover the two respondents’ different perspectives in burnout, and can thus be considered relevant in an understanding of music therapists’ burnout. The discussion of the main themes and the various sub-themes in this study offers in-depth shades to a possible understanding of burnout in music therapists, where focus on the essence of burnout in the individual can form the basis for further research.

Keywords: Burnout, danish music therapists, understanding burnout