The mental health of early childhood education professionals is closely linked to the quality of their work and developmental outcomes in children across various domains. Given the central role of preschools in fostering early learning and development, it is crucial to identify and understand the factors and mechanisms contributing to the mental health of early childhood education professionals. This study aimed to examine the relationship between perceived workplace social support and work-related mental health among preschool educators, as well as the mediating role of perceived work-life interference in this association. The sample included 862 preschool teachers and their assistants, employed in public preschools. Relying on self-report questionnaires, data were collected on their age, work-related characteristics, workplace social support, work-life interference, and indicators of work-related mental health problems (exhaustion and depersonalization) and positive mental health (professional fulfilment). Path analysis revealed that greater workplace social support favourably contributes to mental health at work, both directly and indirectly, by reducing work-life interference. Perceived workplace social support and work-life interference emerged as more significant factors of preschool educators‘ mental health than their age and objective job characteristics (such as the number of children with special needs, and the number of non-native speakers in the group). The findings suggest that fostering supportive relationships among preschool staff can mitigate the adverse effects of job demands on mental well-being of early childhood education professionals.
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