Job satisfaction, work values and work-related stress of secondary school teachers

[摘要] English: The aims of this study are to, by means of a review of the literature and empirical investigation:�?gain an understanding of the complexity and the extent to which teachersexperience job satisfaction, work values and work-related stress, withparticular reference to secondary schools in the Eastern Free State; and�?measure the levels of stress among a group of secondary school teachers,as well as to determine the effect of biographical and organisationalfactors on their levels of stress. Furthermore, the aim was to look atrelations in terms of how the job satisfaction and work values (teachers'needs) of these teachers are affected by work-related stress.It became very clear from the literature review that the impact of stress isexperienced at all levels of society (Van Zyl & Pietersen 1999:74), fromindividuals to national level. In the Sunday Times (August 1999) it is indicatedthat South Africa is a very stressed society and that support is becomingharder to find, as familial networks are not strong enough.A very clear fact is that, without support, stress spills over into differentrelationships and environments.In this study it was furthermore concluded that the teaching profession alsohas the potential of being stressful and affecting the working environment. Itwas found that a lack of effective stress management results in importantdecrements in well-being, as well as dissatisfaction among teachers and aninability to perform up to standard (compare 6.1).The literature survey also revealed that both satisfaction and performance areconnected to rewards (Steyn & Van Wyk 1999:37):�?Rewards impact more directly on the cause of satisfaction thanperformance.�?Rewards levelled on ongoing performance cause subsequentperformance.Therefore this research evidence confirms the fact that it is extremelyimportant for supervisors or school management to show appreciation andrecognition of the work which is done well by teachers. Lynn (1998:46)reflects an interesting statistic supplied by the US Department of Labour,namely that in 1995 it was announced that 46 percent of people who left theirjobs did so because they felt unappreciated.Furthermore, it is important for management to be fully aware of the impact ofall factors believed to be promoting job satisfaction and effective work values,for example:�?Achievement, recognition, working conditions, status, relationship withpeers, salary, company policy and security.�?Making people feel responsible; creating opportunities for people to usetheir abilities and knowledge; making people feel independent in theirwork; being of value to society through one's contributions; creatingpossibilities for promotion; and enabling people to be happy with theconditions of service.The method of research entailed an empirical investigation in which a sampleof 360 secondary school teachers from the Harrismith Education District (i.e.the Eastern Free State towns Warden, Harrismith and Phuthaditjhaba) hadbeen targeted. The questionnaire was used to verify four formulatedhypotheses:2) There is a statistically significant relationship between teachers'level of stress and factors outside the work situation (jobsatisfaction and work values) which contribute to teachers' stress.3) There is a statistically significant relationship between teachers'level of stress and the teachers' expectations and circumstanceswithin the work situation (fields 1 - 6) which contribute to teachers'stress.1914) Teachers experience very high levels of stress.The following analytical tools were considered to analyse and interpretresearch results:t-test: To verify it means of two groups have a difference that occurred bychance;F-test: To highlight the significance of the difference between variances.ANOVA: A one-way analysis of variance.Three hypotheses were accepted for different variables, as showed in theresults, and only one was rejected.It was found that:(1) the majority of respondents were younger than 38 years of age (59,4%)(cf. Table 5.1);(2) 77,3% of the respondents were on post level one (cf. Table 5.2);(3) 56,9% had a length of service that was more than ten years (cf. Table5.3);(4) the majority, namely 56,3%, were well qualified with at least threeyears' tertiary training (cf. Table 5.4);(5) the majority of respondents were male, i.e. 59,7% (cf. Table 5.5);(6) the majority (92,4%) of the respondents had dependents ranging fromone to more than five (cf. Table 5.6);(7) 72,8% of the respondents were married (cf. Table 5.7);(8) 67,2% had South Sotho as home language (cf. Table 5.8);(9) most of the teachers in the Eastern Free State were on post level one,while the majority (92,4%) had dependents ranging from one to morethan five and therefore insufficient income could be a stressor foreducators (cf. Tables 5.2; 5.6);(10) the fact that more teachers were well qualified (56,3%), that more ofthem (56,9%) had more than ten years' teaching experience and thatthe majority of them were in post level one, imply that few opportunitiesfor promotion could be a stressor for educators in the Eastern FreeState;(11) the level of stress for unmarried teachers is significantly higher thanthose of married teachers (cf. Table 5.9);(12) there is a significant relationship (1% level) between teachers' level ofstress and teachers' expectations and circumstances (cf. Table 5.10).These concepts (teachers' level of stress; teachers' circumstances andexpectations) are explained as follows: Teachers' level of stress: This is reflected by the following feelings: no progress, being afraid, feeling uncertain, doubtful, or worried; your views clash with other people's views; experiencing conflict; being bored; beingirritated; losing control of your temper; no confidence in yourself;depending on others; feeling alone; you would like to attack other people;no-one wants to support you; being despondent; feeling guilty;downhearted; aggressive; overburdened; angry; no concentration;dissatisfied; fearful; weepy; too many problems; etc.Cl Teachers' expectations and circumstances within the work situation arereflected by the following feelings:�?Circumstances: dysfunctional organisation; incorrect leadership styles;you are dissatisfied with regard to the nature of your work; there areproblems that concern physical working conditions (e.g. crowding ofpeople, poor lighting); a situation that impacts negatively on the progressand development of ones' career; it is difficult to progress to higher posts;it is difficult to maintain good interpersonal relations; dissatisfaction withregard to aspects like pensions, medical fund, housing aid, achievementbonuses, insurance, salary and all other aspects of your remunerationpackage; working hours; conditions of employment and all otherregulations involving personnel matters.�?Expectations are reflected by the following feelings:You want to be recognised for what you do; assume full responsibility;have a salary that is market-related; function independently; have thenecessary job equipment; be exposed to necessary training courses; havefringe benefits that will ensure your support and security; feel importantand have status; you want to be able to get along with your supervisor;have personnel regulations that satisfy your needs; be included indecision-making that concerns you; perform duties without relations withothers; receive uncontradictory instructions; have furniture and decorationsin your work area that create a pleasant working environment.(13) It was also found that there is a significant relationship betweenteachers' level of stress (feelings noted in point 12) and factors outsidethe work situation (job satisfaction and work values):�?Factors outside the work situation are, for example, family crises; financialobligations; the general economic situation in the country; the rapidlychanging technology; unfavourable home facilities; social status withfriends; health; background; transport problems; spiritual life problems;inadequate accommodation at home; and few recreational facilities.�?Job satisfaction is reflected by the following characteristics: the work itself;conditions of work; remuneration opportunities for promotion; supervision;co-workers; roles; responsibilities; classroom practices; teacherdevelopment and appraisal.�?Work values are reflected by characteristics like the following: exercisingresponsibility; achievement through work; influence over one's work; doingmeaningful work; being able to use one's abilities and knowledge;independence in doing one's work; job satisfaction with regard to the workitself; and contributing to society.In conclusion, it can be noted that teachers' level of stress is affected by theirjob satisfaction and work values (or vice versa).

[发布机构] University of the Free State