Exploring Teacher Well-Being from the Perspectives of Public School Teachers: A Mixed Methods Analysis of Organizational and Individual Factors

Madeline Spiess; Erin Dowdy; Jill Sharkey

Exploring Teacher Well-Being from the Perspectives of Public School Teachers: A Mixed Methods Analysis of Organizational and Individual Factors

Abstract

Teacher well-being (TWB) is crucial in supporting successfully functioning schools. TWB helps maintain high-quality teaching, promotes positive academic and behavior outcomes among students, and facilitates a healthy school climate and community. Despite its significant association with individual and organizational outcomes within schools, TWB remains understudied. The current study explores organizational and individual factors that contribute to TWB, centering teachers’ perspectives of barriers and facilitators to TWB. Employing a convergent parallel mixed methods design, bivariate correlations and thematic analysis were used to provide greater insight into how TWB can be supported. The sample included kindergarten through 12th grade public school teachers across the United States. Results revealed significant relations between individual well-being factors and school climate, teaching efficacy, and job resources. Teachers identified personal and school practices that support their well-being, salient organizational barriers that diminish their well-being, and ideas and recommendations to better support their well-being. Limitations and implications for future research and practice are delineated to support progress towards improved TWB initiatives within schools.

Keywords

References

Arens, A. K., & Morin, A. J. S. (2016). Relations between teachers’ emotional exhaustion and students’ educational outcomes. Journal of Educational Psychology, 108(6), 800–813. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000105
Armstrong, R. A. (2014). When to use the Bonferroni correction. Ophthalmic & Physiological Optics: The Journal of the British College of Ophthalmic Opticians (Optometrists), 34(5), 502–508. https://doi.org/10.1111/opo.12131
Baker, C. N., Peele, H., Daniels, M., Saybe, M., Whalen, K., Overstreet, S., & The New Orleans, T.-I. S. L. C. (2021). The experience of COVID-19 and its impact on teachers’ mental health, coping, and teaching. School Psychology Review, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1080/2372966X.2020.1855473
Bakker, A. B., & Demerouti, E. (2017). Job demands–resources theory: Taking stock and looking forward. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 22, 273–285. https://doi.org/10.1037/ocp0000056
Bakker, A. B., & Oerlemans, W. G. M. (2012). Subjective well-being. In The Oxford handbook of positive organizational scholarship (pp. 178–187). Oxford University Press.
Bangs, J., & Frost, D. (2012). Teacher self-efficacy, voice and leadership: Towards a policy framework for Education International. Education International Research Institute. Cambridge, UK.
Bardach, L., Klassen, R. M., & Perry, N. E. (2022). Teachers’ psychological characteristics: Do they matter for teacher effectiveness, teachers’ well-being, retention, and interpersonal relations? An integrative review. Educational Psychology Review, 34(1), 259–300. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-021-09614-9
Beltman, S., Mansfield, C., & Price, A. (2011). Thriving not just surviving: A review of research on teacher resilience. Educational Research Review, 6(3), 185–207. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2011.09.001

Berger, E., Reupert, A., Campbell, T. C. H., Morris, Z., Hammer, M., Diamond, Z., Hine, R., Patrick, P., & Fathers, C. (2022). A systematic review of evidence-based wellbeing initiatives for schoolteachers and early childhood educators. Educational Psychology Review, 34(4), 2919–2969. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-022-09690-5
Burić, I., Slišković, A., & Penezić, Z. (2019). Understanding teacher well-being: A cross-lagged analysis of burnout, negative student-related emotions, psychopathological symptoms, and resilience. Educational Psychology, 39(9), 1136–1155. https://doi.org/10.1080/01443410.2019.1577952
Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77–101. https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa
Butler, J., & Kern, M. L. (2016). The PERMA-Profiler: A brief multidimensional measure of flourishing. International Journal of Wellbeing, 6(3), Article 3. https://doi.org/10.5502/ijw.v6i3.526
CalSCHLS. (2024). Public dashboards: Key indicators: Staff. https://calschls.org/reports-data/public-dashboards/
Cameron, M., & Lovett, S. (2015). Sustaining the commitment and realising the potential of highly promising teachers. Teachers and Teaching, 21(2), 150–163. https://doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2014.928132
Centers for Disease Control. (2023). Coping with stress. Centers for Disease Control. https://www.cdc.gov/mentalhealth/cope-with-stress/index.html
Charalambous, V., Stalikas, A., & Vrasidas, C. (2021, July 13–16). The design and implementation of a program to enhance teachers’ wellbeing. 42nd Annual Conference of the International School Psychology Association [Paper presentation]. ISPA 2021: Nicosia, Cyprus.
Collie, R. J., & Martin, A. J. (2017). Teachers’ sense of adaptability: Examining links with perceived autonomy support, teachers’ psychological functioning, and students’ numeracy achievement. Learning and Individual Differences, 55, 29–39. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2017.03.003
Collie, R. J., & Perry, N. E. (2019). Cultivating teacher thriving through social–emotional competence and its development. The Australian Educational Researcher, 46(4), 699–714. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13384-019-00342-2
Collie, R. J., Shapka, J. D., & Perry, N. E. (2012). School climate and social–emotional learning: Predicting teacher stress, job satisfaction, and teaching efficacy. Journal of Educational Psychology, 104(4), 1189–1204. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0029356
Dahlkamp, S., Peters, M., & Schumacher, G. (2017). Principal self-efficacy, school climate, and teacher retention: A multi-level analysis. Alberta Journal of Educational Research, 63(4), Article 4. https://doi.org/10.11575/ajer.v63i4.56351
Dancey, C. P., & Reidy, J. (2007). Statistics without maths for psychology. Pearson Education.
Diener, E. (1984). Subjective well-being. Psychological Bulletin, 95(3), 542–575. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.95.3.542
Dreer, B. (2021). Teachers’ well-being and job satisfaction: The important role of positive emotions in the workplace. Educational Studies, 0(0), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1080/03055698.2021.1940872
Dreer, B., & Gouasé, N. (2022). Interventions fostering well-being of schoolteachers: A review of research. Oxford Review of Education, 48(5), 587–605. https://doi.org/10.1080/03054985.2021.2002290
Ed-Data. (2021). Negotiating teacher contracts in California. Ed-Data. https://www.ed-data.org/article/Negotiating-Teachers'-Contracts-in-California
Eddy, C. L., Huang, F. L., Cohen, D. R., Baker, K. M., Edwards, K. D., Herman, K. C., & Reinke, W. M. (2020). Does teacher emotional exhaustion and efficacy predict student discipline sanctions? School Psychology Review, 49(3), 239–255. https://doi.org/10.1080/2372966X.2020.1733340
Falk, D., Shephard, D., & Mendenhall, M. (2022). “I always take their problem as mine” – Understanding the relationship between teacher-student relationships and teacher well-being in crisis contexts. International Journal of Educational Development, 95, 102670. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedudev.2022.102670
Fiddiman, B., & Parelow, L. (2021). How to ensure equitable access to great teaching: A proposal for targeted grants for educational excellence. Center for American Progress. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED617046.pdf
Giesen, L., & Roeser, A. (2020). Structuring a team-based approach to coding qualitative data. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 19. https://doi.org/10.1177/1609406920968700
Glisson, C., & Green, P. (2011). Organizational climate, services, and outcomes in child welfare systems. Child Abuse & Neglect, 35, 582–591. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2011.04.009
Gray, C., Wilcox, G., & Nordstokke, D. (2017). Teacher mental health, school climate, inclusive education and student learning: A review. Canadian Psychology/Psychologie Canadienne, 58(3), 203–210. https://doi.org/10.1037/cap0000117
Grayson, J. L., & Alvarez, H. K. (2008). School climate factors relating to teacher burnout: A mediator model. Teaching and Teacher Education, 24(5), 1349–1363. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2007.06.005
Gregersen, T., Mercer, S., MacIntyre, P., Talbot, K., & Banga, C. A. (2023). Understanding language teacher wellbeing: An ESM study of daily stressors and uplifts. Language Teaching Research, 27(4), 862–883. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362168820965897
Hakanen, J. J., Bakker, A. B., & Schaufeli, W. B. (2006). Burnout and work engagement among teachers. Journal of School Psychology, 43(6), 495–513. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsp.2005.11.001
Harmsen, R., Helms-Lorenz, M., Maulana, R., & van Veen, K. (2018). The relationship between beginning teachers’ stress causes, stress responses, teaching behaviour and attrition. Teachers and Teaching, 24(6), 626–643. https://doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2018.1465404
Hascher, T., Beltman, S., & Mansfield, C. (2021). Teacher wellbeing and resilience: Towards an integrative model. Educational Research, 63(4), 416–439. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131881.2021.1980416
Hascher, T., & Waber, J. (2021). Teacher well-being: A systematic review of the research literature from the year 2000–2019. Educational Research Review, 34, 100411. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2021.100411
Hine, R., Patrick, P., Berger, E., Diamond, Z., Hammer, M., Morris, Z. A., Fathers, C., & Reupert, A. (2022). From struggling to flourishing and thriving: Optimizing educator wellbeing within the Australian education context. Teaching and Teacher Education, 115, 103727. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2022.103727
Hughes, J. N., Wu, J.-Y., Kwok, O., Villarreal, V., & Johnson, A. Y. (2012). Indirect effects of child reports of teacher-student relationship on achievement. Journal of Educational Psychology, 104(2), 350–365. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0026339
Ibrahim, A., & El Zaatari, W. (2020). The teacher–student relationship and adolescents’ sense of school belonging. International Journal of Adolescence and Youth, 25(1), 382–395. https://doi.org/10.1080/02673843.2019.1660998
Jackson, S. E., & Maslach, C. (1982). After-effects of job-related stress: Families as victims. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 3(1), 63–77. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.4030030106
Jennings, P. A., & Greenberg, M. T. (2009). The prosocial classroom: Teacher social and emotional competence in relation to student and classroom outcomes. Review of Educational Research, 79(1), 491–525. https://doi.org/10.3102/0034654308325693
Kangas-Dick, K., & O’Shaughnessy, E. (2020). Interventions that promote resilience among teachers: A systematic review of the literature. International Journal of School & Educational Psychology, 8(2), 131–146. https://doi.org/10.1080/21683603.2020.1734125
Kim, B. J. (2019). Unstable jobs cannot cultivate good organizational citizens: The sequential mediating role of organizational trust and identification. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16(7), 1102.
Le Cornu, R. (2013). Building early career teacher resilience: The role of relationships. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 38(4). https://doi.org/10.14221/ajte.2013v38n4.4
Leiter, M. P., & Maslach, C. (2003). Areas of worklife: A structured approach to organizational predictors of job burnout. In Emotional and physiological processes and positive intervention strategies (Vol. 3, pp. 91–134). Emerald Group Publishing Limited.
Lever, N., Mathis, E., & Mayworm, A. (2017). School mental health is not just for students: Why teacher and school staff wellness matters. Report on Emotional & Behavioral Disorders in Youth, 17(1), 6–12.
MacIntyre, P. D., Ross, J., Talbot, K., Mercer, S., Gregersen, T., & Banga, C. A. (2019). Stressors, personality and wellbeing among language teachers. System, 82, 26–38. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2019.02.013
Madigan, D. J., & Kim, L. E. (2021). Towards an understanding of teacher attrition: A meta-analysis of burnout, job satisfaction, and teachers’ intentions to quit. Teaching and Teacher Education, 105, 103425. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2021.103425
Martin, A., & Collie, R. (2018). Teacher-student relationships and students’ engagement in high school: Does the number of negative and positive relationships with teachers matter? Journal of Educational Psychology, 111, 1188–1207. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000317
National Council on Teacher Quality. (2023). Planning time may help mitigate teacher burnout—How much planning time do teachers get? National Council on Teacher Quality. https://www.nctq.org/blog/Planning-time-may-help-mitigate-teacher-burnoutbut-how-much-planning-time-do-teachers-get
National School Climate Center. (2021). What is school climate and why is it important? National School Climate Center. https://schoolclimate.org/school-climate/
Olin, S. S., Williams, N., Pollock, M., Armusewicz, K., Kutash, K., Glisson, C., & Hoagwood, K. E. (2014). Quality indicators for family support services and their relationship to organizational social context. Administration and Policy in Mental Health, 41(1), 10–21. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10488-013-0499-z
Ouellette, R., Frazier, S. L., Shernoff, E. S., Cappella, E., Mehta, T. G., Maríñez-Lora, A., Cua, G., & Atkins, M. S. (2018). Teacher job stress and satisfaction in urban schools: Disentangling individual, classroom, and organizational level influences. Behavior Therapy, 49(4), 494–508. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beth.2017.11.011
Ouellette, R., Goodman, A., Martinez-Pedraza, F., Moses, J., Cromer, K., Zhao, X., Pierre, J., & Frazier, S. (2020). A systematic review of organizational and workforce interventions to improve the culture and climate of youth-service settings. Administration and Policy in Mental Health and Mental Health Services Research, 47, 650–670. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10488-020-01037-y
Panorama Education. (2023). Panorama teacher and staff survey. Panorama Education.
Reaves, S. J., & Cozzens, J. A. (2018). Teacher perceptions of climate, motivation, and self-efficacy: Is there really a connection? Journal of Education and Training Studies, 6(12), 48–67.
Regional Educational Laboratory. (n.d.). How to grow teacher well-being in your schools. Regional Education Laboratory Pacific and National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance. https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/edlabs/infographics/pdf/REL_PA_How_To_Grow_Teacher_Wellbeing_in_Your_Schools.pdf
Santoro, D. A., & Price, O. A. (2021). Structural supports to promote teacher well-being. EdResearch for Recovery. https://edresearchforaction.org/research-briefs/structural-supports-to-promote-teacher-well-being/
Schonert-Reichl, K. A. (2017). Social and emotional learning and teachers. Future of Children, 27(1), 137–155.
Seligman, M. E. P. (2002). Authentic happiness: Using the new positive psychology to realize your potential for lasting fulfillment. Free Press.
Seligman, M. E. P. (2011). Flourish: A visionary new understanding of happiness and well-being. Free Press.
Skaalvik, E. M., & Skaalvik, S. (2016). Teacher stress and teacher self-efficacy as predictors of engagement, emotional exhaustion, and motivation to leave the teaching profession. Creative Education, 7(13), Article 13. https://doi.org/10.4236/ce.2016.713182
Skaalvik, E. M., & Skaalvik, S. (2018). Job demands and job resources as predictors of teacher motivation and well-being. Social Psychology of Education, 21(5), 1251–1275. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11218-018-9464-8
Taber, K. S. (2018). The use of Cronbach’s alpha when developing and reporting research instruments in science education. Research in Science Education, 48, 1273–1296. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-016-9602-2
Turner, K., & Thielking, M. (2019). Teacher wellbeing: Its effects on teaching practice and student learning. Issues in Educational Research, 29(3), 938–960.
Virtanen, T. E., Vaaland, G. S., & Ertesvåg, S. K. (2019). Associations between observed patterns of classroom interactions and teacher wellbeing in lower secondary school. Teaching and Teacher Education, 77, 240–252.
Wall, C. R. G. (2023). Educator secondary traumatic stress in the pandemic’s wake: Buoying teacher holistic health. Journal of Loss and Trauma, 0(0), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1080/15325024.2023.2264778
Wang, M.-T., & Degol, J. L. (2016). School climate: A review of the construct, measurement, and impact on student outcomes. Educational Psychology Review, 28(2), 315–352. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-015-9319-1
Weiland, A. (2021). Teacher well-being: Voices in the field. Teaching and Teacher Education, 99, 103250. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2020.103250
WestEd. (2023). California school climate, health, and learning survey [California school staff survey]. San Francisco: WestEd.
Zee, M., & Koomen, H. M. Y. (2016). Teacher self-efficacy and its effects on classroom processes, student academic adjustment, and teacher well-being: A synthesis of 40 years of research. Review of Educational Research, 86(4), 981–1015. https://doi.org/10.3102/0034654315626801

Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Teacher and Student Wellbeing

Journal Section

Research Article

Authors

Madeline Spiess ^*
0000-0002-2940-3036
United States

Erin Dowdy
0000-0001-6402-3277
United States

Jill Sharkey
0000-0003-4658-2811
United States

Publication Date

August 31, 2025

Submission Date

March 22, 2025

Acceptance Date

July 15, 2025

Published in Issue

Year 2025 Volume: 14 Number: 2

IZ

https://izlik.org/JA75HC32UL

Cite

RIS / Bibtex

APA

Spiess, M., Dowdy, E., & Sharkey, J. (2025). Exploring Teacher Well-Being from the Perspectives of Public School Teachers: A Mixed Methods Analysis of Organizational and Individual Factors. Journal of Teacher Education and Educators, 14(2), 139-165. https://izlik.org/JA75HC32UL