A MODEL OF TEACHER STRESS AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR MANAGEMENT
| Date | 01 February 1984 |
| Published date | 01 February 1984 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/eb009891 |
| Pages | 157-172 |
| Author | DAVID J. LEACH |
| Subject Matter | Education |
THE JOURNAL OF EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION
VOLUME XXII, NUMBER 2 SUMMER, 1984
A MODEL OF TEACHER STRESS AND ITS IMPLICATIONS
FOR MANAGEMENT1
DAVID J. LEACH
Recent surveys have shown that between 20 per cent to 40 per cent of teachers
experience considerable stress when working in schools. Following a summary of
research into the sources and correlates of reported teacher stress, this paper
proposes a definition and a model of work-related stress in school that incorporates
current concepts and research findings. Examples of tactics and strategies for coping
with and reducing the build-up of environmental stressors are developed from the
model. These aim to provide pointers for the multi-level management of stress
throughout schools.
The occupational stress of teachers has been researched since the 1930's.
The earliest studies were concerned largely with the incidence of emotional
problems, particularly anxiety, amongst teachers whereas later studies
have tried to identify the sources of stress, the effects of stress and the
management of stress in schools. Although studies have depended heavily
on self-report survey data and have used a variety of definitions and
measures, the data available suggest that, while the incidence of anxiety
may be no greater for teachers than for other professional groups,2 a
sizeable proportion of teachers do experience considerable strain, tension
and anxiety in schools. Some writers, such as Dunham3 and Andrews,4
have claimed that more teachers are currently experiencing severe stress
than ever before. For example, a survey of 257 teachers in mixed com-
prehensive schools in England conducted by Kyriacou and Sutcliffe5 found
that approximately 20 per cent of respondents rated being a teacher as
either very stressful or extremely stressful, and Pratt6 found a similar figure
amongst English Primary School teachers. Closer to home, a recent
survey by the SSTUWA7 found that approximately 40 per cent of teachers
in a sample from all categories of schools reported that they were working
under considerable stress. However, a nationwide survey of 5,150
teachers in the United States by the Department of Classroom Teachers of
the National Education Association in 1938 indicated that 37.5 per cent of
teachers were seriously worried and nervous, and in 1951, 43 percent of a
sample of 2,200 teachers reported that they were working under con-
siderable strain and tension.8 In 1967, a survey of 2,290 teachers showed
that 16 per cent were working under considerable strain.9 These figures
DAVID J. LEACH is Lecturer in Applied Psychology, Murdoch University, Western Australia
6150.
158 Model of
Teacher
Stress
indicate that fairly widespread teacher stress is not a new phenomenon,
nor, assuming some comparability between socio-cultural factors and insti-
tutional development is it necessarily on the increase in Anglo-American
educational systems.
SOURCES OF STRESS IN THE SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT
There has been a number of attempts to research the sources of stress in
schools. These have ranged from descriptive, anecdotal records and inter-
view data,10 to factor analytic studies based on self-report stress inven-
tories11
and questionnaires.12 On the whole, the similarity of findings is
impressive despite differences in samples of teachers, varieties of defini-
tions and methods used in obtaining the data. The main clusters of
stressors that have been identified are:
(i) Pupil misbehaviour and its effective management.13
(ii) Concern for pupil's learning and the effectiveness of the teaching pro-
gramme in reaching desired or personally-satisfied standards.14
(iii) Poor personal relationships with colleagues and principal.15
(iv) Too severe time pressures and work load to complete perceived
demands satisfactorily.16
(v) Inadequate resources and facilities for teaching effectively.17
(vi) Poor personnel management (especially lack of consultation) and
inadequate administrative policies and procedures.18
Clearly, information from group research only provides a general check-
list of stressors that might be operating in school and which may be affec-
ting individual teachers. However, it does provide a starting point for look-
ing in the school environment. These factors are, therefore, incorporated
in the proposed model of teacher stress described later (see Figure 1),
under the headings of "demand characteristics", "interpretation of perfor-
mance", and "environmental support or hindrances", as a number of
check-points for consideration in stress management in school, but which
may or may not be crucial in determining stress in the individual case.
Later, they are reiterated in the suggestions for managing stress in schools
at the personal and organizational level.
CORRELATES OF TEACHER STRESS MEASURES
Measures of teacher stress in schools, although based on self-report data,
have been found to correlate significantly with other recognizable
symptoms of stress. According to Kyriacou and Sutcliffe's19 research, for
example, the main feeling that indicates an awareness of stress in teachers
is that of "very tense". They also found that the most common stress
symptoms reported by teachers were feelings of "exhaustion" and "frustra-
tion". Self-reported teacher stress was also found to correlate negatively
with "job satisfaction" and positively with "intention to leave teaching",
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