Perceived Change in Job Demands and Resources and Teacher Well-Being during the Pandemic

Abstract

This study explores the role of perceived change in job demands and resources and socio-demographic characteristics in teacher well-being during the Covid-19 pandemic. We used data from over three thousand Croatian school teachers with at least three years of service. We performed path analysis to test the proposed relationships of socio-demographics (gender, school level and years of service) and perceived change in job demands and resources (work demands, the frequency of student difficulties and the quality of professional cooperation) with teacher well-being (job satisfaction, stress and work-life balance). The effects of the socio-demographic variables on the measures of well-being varied from non-existent to small. The model fitted the data well. However, the parameter values indicated a modest contribution of socio-demographics and perceived change in job demands and resources in explaining teacher well-being during the Covid-19 pandemic. Teachers reported relatively high job satisfaction, low levels of stress, and medium levels of work-life balance. In addition, their experiences of stress and work-life balance were not considerably affected by the perceived increases in job demands. Our results suggest that teachers demonstrated resilience in adapting to challenging circumstances. This capacity should be continuously nurtured in their professional development programmes.