Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

The Perception–Practicum Interface Revisited: Life-wise Language Teaching Perceptions and Teacher Burnout

  • Regular Article
  • Published:
The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Although a great deal of research in education has been devoted to examining several causes of teacher burnout, relatively little of that work has considered the role of teachers’ perceptions of their profession in the formation or alleviation of this syndrome. Thus, given the importance of the perception–practicum interface in English language teaching, this study sought to investigate if L2 teachers’ life-responsive conceptions of teaching may have any predictive power for teacher burnout. To this end, the researchers administered the Maslach burnout inventory and the Life-responsive Language Teaching Beliefs Scale to 92 English language teachers working at different private language institutes of Mashhad and Tehran, Iran. To analyze the data, a combination of Multiple Correspondence Analysis and Multiple Linear Regression was utilized. The results exhibited a significant relationship between the subscales of life-responsive language teaching perceptions and two dimensions of burnout. Specifically, while the scores of Life-wise Empowerment were the best predictors for Depersonalization among teachers, the scores from Adaptability Enhancement were the sole predictors for their Personal Accomplishment. However, none of the four subscales of life-responsive language teaching significantly predicted the variance in Emotional Exhaustion. The practical implications of the study were discussed.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Asgari, A. (2012). The effects of gender and marital status on burnout of English teachers in Iran. Pertanika Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, 20(3), 635–644.

    Google Scholar 

  • Aspinwall, L. G., & Staudinger, U. M. (Eds.). (2003). A psychology of human strengths: Fundamental questions and future directions for a positive psychology (pp. 9–22). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

    Google Scholar 

  • Baer, J. (1998). The case for domain specificity of creativity. Creativity Research Journal, 11(2), 173–177.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Basturkmen, H., Loewen, S., & Ellis, R. (2004). Teachers’ stated beliefs about incidental focus on form and their classroom practices. Applied Linguistics, 25(2), 243–272.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Benzecri, J. P. (1992). Correspondence analysis handbook. New York: Marcel Decker.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bermejo-Toro, L., & Prieto-Ursua, M. (2006). Teachers’ irrational beliefs and their relationship to distress in the profession. Psychology in Spain, 10(1), 88–96.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bernard, M. E. (1988). Teacher stress and irrationality. Communication Presented at the 24th International Congress of Psychology, Sydney, Australia.

  • Bibou-Nakou, I., Stoqiannidou, A., & Kiosseoqlou, G. (1999). The relation between teacher burnout and teachers’ attributions and practices regarding school behavior problems. School Psychology International, 20(2), 209–217.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Borg, S. (1999). Studying teacher cognition in second language grammar teaching. System, 27(1), 19–31.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Borg, S. (2003). Teacher cognition in language teaching: A review of research on what language teachers think, know, believe, and do. Language Teaching, 36(2), 81–109.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Borg, S. (2009). Teacher cognition and language education. ELT Journal, 63(2), 183–186.

    Google Scholar 

  • Breen, M. P., Hird, B., Milton, M., Thwaite, A., & Oliver, R. (2001). Making sense of language teaching: Teachers’ principles and classroom practices. Applied Linguistics, 22(4), 470–501.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brouwers, A., & Tomic, W. (2000). A longitudinal study of teacher burnout and perceived self-efficacy in classroom management. Teaching and Teacher Education, 16, 239–253.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Calvete, E., & Villa, A. (1999). Estres y burnout docente: Influencia de variables cognitivas. Revista de educacion, 319, 291–303.

    Google Scholar 

  • Caner, M., Subasi, G., & Kara, S. (2010). Teachers’ beliefs on foreign language teaching practices in early phases of primary education: A case study. Turkish Online Journal of Qualitative Inquiry, 1(1), 62–76.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cano-Garcia, F. J., Padilla-Munoz, E. M., & Carrasco-Ortiz, M. A. (2005). Personality and contextual variables in teacher burnout. Personality and Individual Differences, 38, 929–940.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cherniss, C. (1980). Staff burnout: Job stress in the human services. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chwalisz, K., Altmaier, E. M., & Russell, D. W. (1992). Causal attributions, self-efficacy cognitions, and coping with stress. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 11, 377–400.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Costa, P. T., & McCrae, R. R. (1999). Inventario _EO reducido de cinco factores [NEO Five Factor Inventory]. Madrid, Spain: TEA Ediciones.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dewey, J. (1897). My pedagogic creed. The School Journal, 54(3), 77–80.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dorman, J. P. (2003). Relationship between school and classroom environment and teacher burnout: A LISREL analysis. Social Psychology of Education, 6, 107–127.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ellis, A. (1962). Reason and emotion in psychotherapy. New York: Lyle Stuart.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ellis, A. (1978). What people can do for themselves to cope with stress. In C. Cooper & R. Payne (Eds.), Stress at work (pp. 209–222). New York: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Endes, R. B. (1996). The role of irrational beliefs in behavioral consultation: Implications for treatment outcomes. Humanities and Social Sciences, 56(8), 30–55.

    Google Scholar 

  • Evers, W. J. G., Brouwers, A., & Tomic, W. (2002). Burnout and self-efficacy: A study on teachers’ beliefs when implementing an innovative educational system in the Netherlands. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 72, 227–243.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Evers, W., Tomic, W., & Browers, A. (2005). Does equity sensitivity moderate the relationship between self-efficacy beliefs and teacher burnout? Representative Research in Social Psychology, 28, 35–46.

    Google Scholar 

  • Farber, B. A. (2000). Treatment strategies for different types of teacher burnout. Psychotherapy in Practice, 56, 675–689.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fernet, C., Guay, F., Senecal, C., & Austin, S. (2012). Predicting intraindividual changes in teacher burnout: The role of perceived school environment and motivational factors. Teacher and Teacher Education, 28, 514–525.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Forman, S. G. (1994). Teacher stress management. In M. E. Bernard & R. Digiuseppe (Eds.), Rational-emotive consultation in applied settings (pp. 107–128). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

  • Francis, M. (2007). Life skills education. www.changingminds.org.

  • Freire, P. (1998). Pedagogy of freedom: Ethics, democracy, and civic courage. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Freudenberger, H. J. (1974). Staff burnout. Journal of Social Issues, 30, 159–165.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Friedman, I. A., & Farber, B. A. (1992). Professional self-concept as a predictor of teacher burnout. Journal of Educational Research, 86, 28–35.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gamsjager, E., & Buschmann, I. (1999). Determinants of teachers’ burnout. Psychologie in Erziehung und Unterricht, 46, 281–292.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gargari, R. B. (1995). Psychological syndromes in teacher burnout and coping mechanisms. Unpublished master’s thesis, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran.

  • Ghonsooly, B., & Raeesi, A. (2012). Exploring the relationship between creativity and burnout among Iranian EFL teachers. International Journal of Linguistics, 4(3), 121–134.

    Google Scholar 

  • Goddard, R., O’Brien, P., & Goddard, M. (2006). Work environment predictors of beginning teacher burnout. British Educational Research Journal, 32(6), 857–874.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Goody, J. (2001). Competencies and education: Contextual diversity. In D. S. Rychen & L. H. Salganik (Eds.), Defining and selecting key competencies (pp. 175–190). Gottingen: Hogrefe and Huber Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • 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.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hakanen, J. J., Bakker, A. B., & Schaufeli, W. B. (2006). Burnout and work engagement among teachers. Journal of School Psychology, 43, 495–513.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hoffman, D. L., & Franke, G. R. (1986). Correspondence analysis: Graphical representation of categorical data in marketing research. Journal of Marketing Research, 23, 213–227.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jennett, H. K., Harris, S. L., & Mesibov, G. B. (2003). Commitment to philosophy, teacher efficacy, and burnout among teachers of children with autism. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 33, 583–593.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Johnson, K. E. (1992). The relationship between teachers’ beliefs and practices during literacy instruction for non-native speakers of English. Journal of Reading Behavior, 14(1), 83–108.

    Google Scholar 

  • Krishnamurti, J. (1981). Education and the significance of life. New York: HarperCollins Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Landeche, P. (2009). The correlation between creativity and burnout in public school classroom teachers. Unpublished master thesis, University of Southwest Louisiana, Lafayette.

  • Larson, D. G., & Cook, R. E. (1985). Life-skills training in education. Journal of Group Psychotherapy, Psychodrama, & Sociometry, 38(1), 11–22.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lavian, R. H. (2012). The impact of organizational climate on burnout among homeroom teachers and special education teachers (full classes/individual pupils) in mainstream schools. Teachers and Teaching: Theory and Practice, 18(2), 233–247.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leung, D. Y. P., & Lee, W. W. S. (2006). Predicting intention to quit among Chinese teachers: differential predictability of the components of burnout. Anxiety Stress & Coping: An International Journal, 19, 129–141.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Linley, P. A., & Joseph, S. (2004). Positive psychology in practice. New York, NY: Wiley.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Marchant, G. J. (1992). Attitudes towards research based effective teaching behaviors. Journal of International Psychology, 19(2), 7–16.

    Google Scholar 

  • Marton, F. (1981). Phenomenography: Describing conceptions of the world around us. Instructional Science, 10, 177–200.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maslach, C. (1999). Progress in understanding teacher burnout. In R. Vandenburghe & A. M. Huberman (Eds.), Understanding and preventing teacher stress: A sourcebook of international research and practice (pp. 211–222). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Maslach, C. (2003). Job burnout: New directions in research and intervention. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 12, 189–192.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maslach, C., & Jackson, S. E. (1981). Maslach burnout inventory research edition manual. Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maslach, C., & Jackson, S. E. (1986). Maslach burnout inventory. Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maslach, C., & Jackson, S. E. (1993). Manual of the Maslach burnout inventory (2nd ed.). Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maslach, C., & Leiter, M. P. (1997). The truth about burnout: How organizations cause personal stress and what to do about it. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maslach, C., Schaufeli, W. B., & Leiter, M. P. (2001). Job burnout. Annual Review of Psychology, 52, 397–422.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Matthews, B. (2006). Engaging education: Developing emotional literacy, equity, and co-education. Buckingham: Open University Press/McGraw-Hill Education.

    Google Scholar 

  • Miller, K. I., Stiff, J. B., & Ellis, B. H. (1988). Communication and empathy as precursors to burnout among human service workers. Communication Monographs, 55, 250–266.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Noddings, N. (2003). Happiness and education. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Oro, L. B., & Ursua, M. P. (2005). Teacher irrational beliefs and their relation with educational uneasiness. Clinica-y-Salud, 16(1), 45–64.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ozkanal, U. (2010). Investigation of burnout among instructors working at ESOGU preparatory school. English Language Teaching, 3, 166–172.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pennington, M. C. (1995). Work satisfaction, motivation, and commitment in teaching English as a second language. ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 404 850.

  • Peterson, C., Park, N., & Seligman, M. E. P. (2005). Orientations to happiness and life satisfaction: The full life versus the empty life. Journal of Happiness Studies, 6, 25–41.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pillay, H., Goddard, R., & Wilss, L. (2005). Well-being, burnout and competence: Implications for teachers. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 30(2), 22–33.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pines, A. M. (2002). Teacher burnout: A psychodynamic existential perspective. Teachers and Teaching: Theory and Practice, 8(2), 121–140.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pishghadam, R. (2011). Introducing applied ELT as a new approach in second/foreign language studies. Iranian EFL Journal, 7(2), 9–20.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pishghadam, R., & Sahebjam, S. (2012). Personality and emotional intelligence in teacher burnout. The Spanish Journal of Psychology, 15(1), 227–236.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pishghadam, R., & Zabihi, R. (2012). Life syllabus: A new research agenda in English language teaching. Perspectives, 19(1), 23–27.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pishghadam, R., Zabihi. R., & Ghadiri, M. (2012a). Opening up a new pathway to the future of ELT: Opening up a new pathway to the future of ELT: Design and validation of a life-responsive language teaching beliefs scale for L2 teachers. In Proceedings of the First Conference on Language Learning and Teaching: An Interdisciplinary Approach (LLT-IA), Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran.

  • Pishghadam, R., Zabihi, R., & Kermanshahi, P. (2012b). Educational language teaching: A new movement beyond reflective/critical teaching. Life Science Journal, 9(1), 892–899.

    Google Scholar 

  • Radja, K., Hoffmann, A. M., & Bakhshi, P. (2008). Education and capabilities approach: Life skills education as a bridge to human capabilities. Retrieved September 9, 2008, from http://ethique.perso.neuf.fr/Hoffmann_Radja_Bakhshi.pdf.

  • Richards, J. C. (1998). Beyond training. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schaufeli, W. B. (2003). Past performance and future perspectives of burnout research. South African Journal of Industrial Psychology, 29, 1–15.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schaufeli, W. B., & Enzmann, D. (1998). The burnout companion to study and practice: A critical analysis. London, England: Taylor & Francis.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schaufeli, W. B., & Salanova, M. (2007). Efficacy or inefficacy, that’s the question: burnout and work engagement, and their relationships with efficacy beliefs. Anxiety, Stress, & Coping: An International Journal, 20, 177–196.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schaufeli, W., Maslach, C., & Marek, T. (1996). Professional burnout: Recent developments in theory and research. Washington, DC: Taylor & Francis.

    Google Scholar 

  • Seligman, M. E. P., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Positive psychology: An introduction. American Psychologist, 55, 5–14.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Seligman, M. E. P., Steen, T. A., Park, N., & Peterson, C. (2005). Positive psychology progress: Empirical validation of interventions. American Psychologist, 60, 410–421.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Seligman, M. E. P., Rashid, T., & Parks, A. C. (2006). Positive psychotherapy. American Psychologist, 61, 774–788.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Skaalvik, E. M., & Skaalvik, S. (2007). Dimensions of teacher self-efficacy and relations with strain factors, perceived collective teacher efficacy, and teacher burnout. Journal of Educational Psychology, 99, 611–625.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Skaalvik, E. M., & Skaalvik, S. (2010). Teacher self-efficacy and teacher burnout: A study of relations. Teaching and Teaching Education, 26, 1059–1069.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, D. B. (1996). Teacher decision making in the adult ESL classroom. In D. Freeman & J. C. Richards (Eds.), Teacher learning in language teaching (pp. 197–216). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Snyder, C. R., & Lopez, S. J. (2007). Positive psychology: The science and practical explorations of human strengths. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Starnaman, S. M., & Miller, K. I. (1992). A test of a causal model of communication and burnout in the teaching profession. Communication Education, 41, 40–53.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Teven, J. J. (2007). Teacher temperament: Correlates with teacher caring, burnout, and organizational outcomes. Communication Education, 56(3), 382–400.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thompson, A. G. (1992). Teachers’ beliefs and conceptions: A synthesis of the research. In D. A. Grouws (Ed.), Handbook of research on mathematics teaching and learning (pp. 127–146). New York: Macmillan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Van Patten, B. (1997). How language teaching is constructed: introduction to the special issue. Modern Language Journal, 81, 1–5.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Walker, J. C. (1999). Self-determination as an educational aim. In R. Marples (Ed.), The aims of education (pp. 112–123). London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Walters, J. D. (1997). Education for life: Preparing children to meet the challenges. Nevada, CA: Crystal Clarity Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Woods, D. (1996). Teacher cognition in language teaching: beliefs, decision-making, and classroom practice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

We gratefully acknowledge the project reported here was supported by a grant-in-aid of research from Ferdowsi University of Mashhad in 2013 (contract code: 27377) without which this research would not have been possible.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran

    Reza Pishghadam & Shaghayegh Shayesteh

  2. University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran

    Reza Zabihi

Authors
  1. Reza Pishghadam
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Reza Zabihi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Shaghayegh Shayesteh
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Reza Pishghadam.

Appendices

Appendices

Appendix 1: Sample Items of the MBI

Emotional Exhaustion: I feel emotionally drained from my work.

Depersonalization: I feel I treat some recipients as if they were impersonal objects.

Personal Accomplishment: In my work, I deal with emotional problems very calmly.

Appendix 2: Sample Items of the LLTBQ

Life-wise Empowerment: Language education can help the prevention of health and social problems.

Adaptability Enhancement: An optimal goal of language learning tasks should be to enhance learner’s decision-making capabilities.

Pro-social Development: Language classes should be places where effective communication can be enhanced.

Life-over-language Preference: Attending to learners’ feelings and emotions deviates language teachers from teaching the language.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Pishghadam, R., Zabihi, R. & Shayesteh, S. The Perception–Practicum Interface Revisited: Life-wise Language Teaching Perceptions and Teacher Burnout. Asia-Pacific Edu Res 23, 287–297 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40299-013-0104-y

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40299-013-0104-y

Keywords

Search

Navigation