Teachers' emotional processing ability enables healthy social, emotional, and cognitive development of children and adolescents at school. Emotionally competent teachers tune in to their students and effectively regulate their emotions. Students can form secure attachment to teachers, which is a protective factor concerning peer violence, drug abuse, risky adolescent sexual behavior, and predicts students' academic success and health. When a teacher can regulate students' emotions, their sense of efficacy and job satisfaction increase, while burnout and stress decrease. Because we were interested in the extent to which Slovenian primary schools provide a space where students can securely relate to teachers and enjoy healthy development, we measured the quality of the school climate among teachers and students from 6th to 9th grade in 26 Slovenian primary schools from nine statistical regions (Carinthia, Coastal-Karst region, Mura region, Sava region, Gorizia region, Central Slovenia, Savinja region, Drava region and Upper Carniola). We also measured teachers' emotional processing capacity, their burnout levels and the levels of stress they perceive. We determined whether a higher quality of school climate in terms of the quality and consistency of relationships between students and adults at school, measured in teachers, is associated with a higher emotional processing capacity, less burnout and a lower perceived level of stress and vice versa. We determined the connection between teachers' emotional processing capacity with their burnout and perceived stress. In addition, we compared the quality of school climate in Slovenian primary schools with the quality of climate in schools abroad (USA). To help improve teachers' emotional processing capacity, within this research we designed and included teachers in an educational model based on how interpersonal relationships are understood within the relational family paradigm. In the second part of the research, we used quantitative methodology to determine whether teachers who participated in the education increased their emotional processing capacity and reduced burnout and the level of perceived stress compared to teachers who did not participate in the education. Using the qualitative method of content analysis of semi-structured interviews with participants, we examined which elements of the education process teachers perceived as the reasons for changes in their emotional processing capacity, lower burnout and the level of perceived stress, and identified the fundamental mechanisms of the relational family paradigm through which these changes were realized. Students (N=1040) rated the quality of the school climate worse than teachers (N=603). They rated the quality of relationships between students and teachers the lowest. The highest level of agreement among Slovenian primary school students was shown in the dimension of parental involvement in school activities. Students from the Carinthia and Upper Carniola regions were the most satisfied with the atmosphere at school, while students from the Sava region were the least satisfied. Teenagers from suburban schools rated the atmosphere at school better than those in cities and rural areas. In addition to the tidiness of the school building, teachers rated the school staff's commitment to the quality of learning, i.e. their effort in working with students, and the equality and fairness of their treatment of students the highest. Students, meanwhile, rated both dimensions the lowest. Teachers perceived the relationships between school, parents and the community the worst, while students showed the highest level of agreement in this area. Teachers rated the quality of school climate the lowest in Carinthia and the Mura region, and the highest in Central Slovenia and Upper Carniola. In most regions, students and teachers perceived the quality of school climate in opposite ways, but both perceived the quality of school climate the highest in the suburban environment. The most adequate emotional processing was reported by teachers from Central Slovenia and Upper Carniola, and these also perceived the least burnout and stress. Carinthia and the Mura region stand out as the lowest on the Emotional Processing Scale and in relation to burnout and stress. Teachers from the Sava region rated their emotional processing capacity the best among all regions and reported the lowest level of professional burnout in the country. Burnout and stress in Slovenian teachers are rare or low. The suburban environment proved to be the most optimal when we measured teachers' emotional processing, burnout and the level of perceived stress. The presumption that a higher quality of school climate is associated with teachers' higher emotional processing capacity and lower burnout and lower levels of perceived stress was confirmed. The relation between teachers' emotional processing capacity and their burnout and perceived stress was also confirmed. The more teachers are able to process their emotions, i.e. the more they are emotionally stable, the less burned out they are and the less stressed they feel. The hypothesis that the school climate in Slovenian primary schools is of lower quality was confirmed from the perspective of students, but not from the perspective of teachers. The teachers who participated in training on the relational family paradigm of understanding interpersonal relationships increased their emotional processing capacity, and their personal burnout and burnout from working with people, especially students, decreased. The training had no effect on professional burnout, emotional stability and perceived stress. The content analysis of interviews after completing the training with 34 participants revealed the main reasons (8 overarching themes) that influenced the improvement of teachers' emotional processing capacity and the reduction of their personal burnout and burnout from working with students during the training process. These reasons are: hearing stories from adolescents and parents about their experience of processing early traumas, the awareness of the importance of resolving their own dysfunctional relationship patterns, and raising awareness of the importance of teachers' love and compassion for students. This is followed by understanding the causes of students' difficult behavior, the way content is presented and the personality of the education providers, the quality of education, understanding the importance of teachers' compassion for themselves and their self-confidence, and sharing personal experiences with colleagues. Among the fundamental elements or mechanisms of the relational family paradigm in the education process, the participants especially internalized the importance of affect regulation (33%) and understanding the mechanism of the affective psychological construct (29%). This was followed by the awareness of core affects (18%) and recognition of the mechanisms of projective-introjective identification (16%) and compulsive repetition (4%). The evaluation of the training showed that teachers gained new knowledge and would like to continue this learning process. The higher emotional competence of teachers is associated with both the higher quality of the school climate and lower burnout and stress in teachers, therefore it significantly contributes to creating a secure and stimulating learning environment for the healthy development of students, as well as to higher job satisfaction in teachers.
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