The nature and contexts of teachers' affective experiences
Embargo Date
2023-09-30
OA Version
Citation
Abstract
This three-study dissertation examines the nature and contexts of teachers’ affective experiences. After providing a rationale for research regarding teachers’ emotions in Chapter 1, I present in Chapter 2 a case study of the emotional experiences of educators working at an alternative high school program. I find that staff members working at this program for students with emotional and behavioral disabilities (EBD) strategically express a wide range of emotions in service of student development. These strategic expressions are informed by two types of additional emotional work: 1) gathering data on students’ emotional needs and competencies and 2) defining their own roles and responsibilities within the organizational system. This study suggests that in order to better support students’ emotional development, school leaders should take steps to distribute emotional responsibilities equitably, create systems which foster collaborative data sharing about students’ emotional needs, and support staff members’ critical and compassionate reflection on their own emotional experiences. In Chapter 3, I present a quantitative analysis of the experiences of teachers of students with EBD working in upper elementary school classrooms. Many teachers of students with EBD report high levels of emotional exhaustion, which likely contributes to continued shortages of teachers to fill such positions. To understand teachers’ experiences of emotional exhaustion, and decrease the negative outcomes associated with it, researchers need rich data regarding teachers’ momentary affective responses to their work. In this study, I use the experience sampling method, a longitudinal survey method, to examine the momentary emotions of 14 teachers of students with EBD over multiple days of school. I analyze teachers’ momentary emotions in light of the activities in which they engage and their perceptions of overall self-efficacy, stress, and emotional exhaustion. I find that, despite teachers’ moderate to high levels of emotional exhaustion, they experienced positive emotions more frequently and intensely than negative emotions. I also find that overall emotional exhaustion does not predict momentary emotions. Rather, positive emotions are predicted by teachers’ momentary appraisals of success and importance, as well as the activity in which they are currently engaged. Finally, in Chapter 4, I present a quantitative analysis of the emotional experiences of 238 teachers working across 19 different schools in two suburban school districts. Using data collected via the experience sampling method, I analyze teachers’ momentary emotions in light of their organizational contexts, and in light of their appraisals of particular activities. I find that district, school level, and role are associated with teachers’ mean levels of various momentary affective experiences. I further find that teachers’ momentary emotions are predicted by the activity in which they are engaged, and their appraisals of how the activity is going. Although each of these three studies examines a different dimension of teachers’ emotions, all three show the salience of emotions to the work of teachers. Therefore, in Chapter 5, I provide a discussion of the important implications of this research for teachers, school leaders, and researchers, concluding with recommendations for future research.