The Relationships Among Organizational Support, Teacher Well-being, and Teacher Resilience in Secondary School Teachers

Lisa Journell, Wright State University

Abstract

This study examined the relationships among perceived organizational support, teacher well-being, and teacher resilience in secondary school teachers in Ohio public schools. An explanatory sequential mixed methods research design was employed. In phase one, survey data were collected from Ohio public school teachers (n = 254, grades 6-12), and structural equation modeling was used to analyze the structure of the relationships between the variables of interest. In phase two, using a phenomenological approach, follow-up interviews were conducted with a subset of participants (n = 10) to examine the lived experience of teachers with high and low levels of teacher resilience. Although the hypothesized model for the relationships between the variables was not supported by the survey data in phase one, the interview data indicated that teachers with high resilience experienced more school support and personal protective factors than teachers with low teacher resilience. Teachers with high resilience attributed their resilience to school support (supportive leaders, colleagues, being treated as a professional, recognition, teamwork, and adequate resources) and personal protective iv factors (effective teaching skills, relationships, compartmentalization, previous experiences, and mindset). Teachers with low resilience experienced more threats to their resilience (unsupportive leaders, feeling invisible, post-COVID era challenges, bureaucracy, lack of colleague support, and fixed mindset). Implications for the study include: (a) provide a better understanding of how schools as organizations can support teacher well-being and resilience through policies, practices, and relationships, (b) inform school leaders on how they can develop organizational practices that foster teacher well-being and resilience, and (c) inform teachers on personal and contextual resources that bolster their well-being and resilience in the profession.