Affiliations: Karolinska Institutet, Department of Clinical
Neuroscience, Division of Psychology, Stockholm, Sweden
Note: [] Address for correspondence: Daniel Hultell, Karolinska
Institutet, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Division of Psychology, 171 77
Stockholm, Sweden. Tel.: +468 524 838 06; Fax: +468 30 72 98; E-mail:
daniel.hultell@ki.se
Abstract: Objective: When entering employment many beginning teachers
experience a reality shock and a crisis of competence. These two factors, in
combination with high levels of job demands and low levels of job resources,
may lead to the development of burnout. The purpose of the study was to
investigate how individual characteristics, the educational context, and the
work context predicted levels of burnout and work engagement during this
transition period. Participants: The sample consisted of 1290 beginning
teachers from Sweden. Methods: Data were collected using surveys during
the final year of education and during the initial period of employment. Data
were analyzed using hierarchical regression. Results: Job demands, job
resources, and spillover between private life and work accounted for the
largest amount of explained variance in both burnout and work engagement. Job
demands were more strongly related to burnout, whereas job resources more
strongly related to work engagement. The predictors with the greatest relative
influence on both burnout and work engagement were unmet expectations and
mastery of skills. Conclusions: The results support the importance of the
work context's impact on burnout and work engagement. Additionally, the
interaction between private life and work should be further studied in future
studies.
