Read reported exhaustion without assuming its cause or treating a mean as a diagnosis.
The six-item CBI Personal Burnout module asks about tiredness, physical and emotional exhaustion, feeling unable to take more, being worn out, and feeling weak and susceptible to illness. It describes reported exhaustion across life rather than attributing it to a particular job.
The five frequency anchors score 100, 75, 50, 25 and 0 from Always to Never/almost never. There are no reversed personal items. At least three of six valid responses are required by the source; average their adjusted values using the actual valid-response count.
What the personal module can describe
The source calls this scale Personal Burnout and defines its focus as prolonged physical and psychological exhaustion. The six questions do not establish where that exhaustion came from. Paid work, caring responsibilities, sleep, health and other circumstances may be relevant, but the module cannot separate their contributions. In particular, its label should not turn every form of tiredness outside work into the WHO’s occupational burnout phenomenon. The WHO definition is specific to the work context; CBI personal exhaustion is a separate self-report scope. Keep these different meanings visible when reading your result.
When the reported mean is higher
A higher mean indicates more frequent endorsement of these exhaustion experiences on the source response scale. It is not a probability of becoming ill, a diagnosis or proof that your job is responsible. It also cannot tell you that one particular recovery action will work. The result can help you describe what you have been noticing and prepare a conversation about its effect on daily life. Use the actual items and valid count alongside the mean, especially if only part of the module was answerable. A number alone cannot assess severity in its clinical sense.
When the reported mean is lower
A lower mean indicates less frequent reporting of the six experiences that were answered. It does not certify good health, rule out a cause of fatigue or mean that you should ignore a concern. Someone can answer several items at zero while having a specific difficulty that the remaining wording does not capture. The source scale is not a medical examination. If unexplained tiredness persists or affects your daily life, an appropriately qualified health professional can assess the situation using information that this questionnaire does not collect. You do not need a high score to seek help.
Partial answers and valid zeroes
All thirteen items in this two-module presentation need a selection, including NA when necessary. Personal exhaustion needs at least three valid ratings among its six items. Three valid zeroes therefore produce a mean of 0.00, whereas two valid ratings and four NA responses leave the module insufficient. Missing information is not replaced by zero or fifty. A mean based on three items is also not identical evidence to a mean based on six, even when the numbers match. Notice which items were answered before comparing attempts or interpreting a difference.
Two examples with the right denominator
For fictional responses coded 100, 75, 50, 75, 25 and 75, the sum is four hundred. Four hundred divided by six is 66.666666…, displayed as 66.67. There is no reverse coding in this module. In a separate example, three valid responses of 0, 25 and 50, with three NA selections, sum to seventy-five and give 75 divided by 3, or 25.00. Dividing by all six would be incorrect. The displayed mean is in CBI score points from zero to one hundred, not a percentage chance of burnout.
The same mean can come from different situations
Two fictional people can have the same personal mean while reporting different experiences: one mainly notices physical exhaustion, while another reports emotional exhaustion and feeling worn out. They can also have different circumstances or reasons for leaving items unanswered. The questionnaire cannot establish that they have the same cause or need the same response. Nor does a personal mean higher than a work-related mean prove that the cause is outside work. The modules contain different questions and references; their difference is not an estimate of a causal share.
Prepare support without blaming yourself
Write down one experience that is affecting daily life, when you notice it and what you would like help understanding. You can take that description to a health professional if tiredness is persistent, unexplained or disruptive. When work is involved, conditions such as workload, staffing, control and support may need discussion at an organizational level as well. WHO guidance emphasizes working conditions and workers’ involvement, not only individual coping. You can read the work-related guide, seek support appropriate to your situation or stop here; another personality test is not a required next step.
Source permission and this selected edition
This edition administers two complete CBI modules: six personal items and seven work-related items. It does not administer the six client-related items and is not the full nineteen-item inventory or a newly validated thirteen-item short form. NFA permits commercial and non-commercial use with clear attribution to Borritz and colleagues’ 2006 PUMA study. English questions, response formats, the work energy reversal and source minimum counts are retained. Chinese is a FermatMind working translation without established measurement equivalence. No risk bands, clinical cutoff, population rank or overall burnout score is added.