Perceived change in job demands and resources and teacher well-being during the pandemic

Marušić, Iris (author), Šabić, Josip (author), Matić Bojić, Jelena (author)

This study explores the role of perceived change in job demands and resources and socio-demographic characteristics in teacher well-being during the Covid-19 pandemic. We used data from over three thousand Croatian school teachers with at least three years of service. We per-formed path analysis to test the proposed relationships of socio-demo-graphics (gender, school level and years of service) and perceived change in job demands and resources (work demands, the frequency of student difficulties and the quality of professional cooperation) with teacher well-being (job satisfaction, stress and work-life balance). The effects of the socio-demographic variables on the measures of well-being varied from non-existent to small. The model fitted the data well. However, the parameter values indicated a modest contribution of socio-demograph-ics and perceived change in job demands and resources in explaining teacher well-being during the Covid-19 pandemic. Teachers reported relatively high job satisfaction, low levels of stress, and medium levels of work-life balance. In addition, their experiences of stress and work-life balance were not considerably affected by the perceived increases in job demands. Our results suggest that teachers demonstrated resilience in adapting to challenging circumstances. This capacity should be continu-ously nurtured in their professional development programmes.

• Language: English
• Keywords: Covid-19 pandemic, job demands-resources model, teachers, well-being
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: PEF - Faculty of Education
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2026
• Number of pages: Str. 207-226
• Numbering: Vol. 16, no. 1
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-181739
• UDC: 37.011.3-051
• ISSN on article: 2232-2647
• DOI: 10.26529/cepsj.1782
• COBISS.SI-ID: 198807299
• Publication date in RUL: 15.04.2026

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: CEPS Journal: Center for Educational Policy Studies Journal = revija Centra za študij edukacijskih strategij
• Publisher: Pedagoška fakulteta, Univerza v Ljubljani
• ISSN: 2232-2647
• COBISS.SI-ID: 254029824

Licences

• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Title: Zaznane spremembe v delovnih zahtevah in virih ter dobro počutje učiteljev med pandemijo

Abstract

Ta študija raziskuje vlogo zaznanih sprememb v delovnih zahtevah in virih ter sociodemografskih značilnostih pri dobrem počutju učiteljev med pandemijo covida-19. Uporabili smo podatke več kot tri tisoč hrvaških učiteljev z najmanj tremi leti delovne dobe. Izvedli smo analizo poti, da bi preverili predlagane povezave med sociodemografskimi značilnostmi (spol, stopnja šole in dolžina delovne dobe) ter zaznanimi spremembami v delovnih zahtevah in virih (delovne zahteve, pogostost težav učencev in kakovost strokovnega sodelovanja) z dobrim počutjem učiteljev (zadovoljstvo pri delu, stres ter usklajevanje poklicnega in zasebnega življenja). Učinki sociodemografskih spremenljivk na mere do-brega počutja so bili različni, od neobstoječih do majhnih. Model se je dobro ujemal s podatki, vendar so vrednosti parametrov pokazale skromen prispevek sociodemografskih značilnosti ter zaznanih sprememb v delovnih zahtevah in virih k pojasnjevanju dobrega počutja učiteljev med pandemijo covida-19. Učitelji so poročali o razmeroma visokem zadovoljstvu pri delu, nizki stopnji stresa ter o srednji stopnji usklajevanja poklicnega in zasebnega življenja. Poleg tega na njihovo doživljanje stresa ter usklajevanja poklicnega in zasebnega življenja ni bistveno vplivalo zaznano povečanje delovnih zahtev. Naši rezultati kažejo, da so učitelji pokazali odpornost pri prilagajanju na zahtevne okoliščine. To zmožnost bi bilo treba nenehno gojiti v programih njihovega poklicnega razvoja.

• Keywords: pandemija covid-19, model delovnih zahtev in virov, učitelji, dobro počutje

Projects

• Funder: Croatian Science Foundation