A longitudinal investigation of teachers’ emotional labor, well-being, and perceived student engagement

Hui WANG, Nathan C. HALL, Ronnel Bornasal KING

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlespeer-review

30 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Despite existing studies on teachers’ emotional labour having been primarily correlational in nature, most researchers to date have assumed teachers’ emotional labour to predict well-being outcomes (e.g. job satisfaction, burnout). Moreover, although it is commonly understood that teachers strategically manipulate their expressions of emotions (e.g. intentional displays of anger or disappointment) as effective classroom management strategies, the predictive relationship between their emotional labour and student engagement lacks empirical investigation. The present short-term longitudinal study addresses these research gaps by evaluating the directionality of relationships between teachers’ emotional labour, psychological well-being, and perceived student engagement in 1,086 Canadian practicing teachers. Structural equation modelling analyses showed both teachers’ well-being and perceived student engagement to directly predict their use of emotional labour strategies rather than vice versa. Further theoretical and pedagogical development implications are discussed. Copyright © 2021 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1319-1336
JournalEducational Psychology
Volume41
Issue number10
Early online date21 Oct 2021
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2021

Citation

Wang, H., Hall, N. C., & King, R. B. (2021). A longitudinal investigation of teachers’ emotional labor, well-being, and perceived student engagement. Educational Psychology, 41(10), 1319-1336. doi: 10.1080/01443410.2021.1988060

Keywords

  • Practicing teachers
  • Emotional labour
  • Job satisfaction
  • Emotional exhaustion
  • Student engagement

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