Chapter 5: A Mixed Methods Study of Stress, Coping, and Burnout Among Kindergarten and Elementary Teachers in Germany

Transactional models of stress posit that perceptions of both resources and demands determine the extent to which stress will be experienced. Previous research examining the relationship of teachers’ stress levels and coping resources to burnout symptoms in the United States was replicated with kindergarten and elementary teachers in Germany. Participants were 444 elementary teachers in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Teachers reporting higher stress levels also reported more burnout symptoms than teachers reporting lower stress levels. Teachers reporting low stress prevention and coping skills reported higher levels of some burnout symptoms than did teachers reporting higher stress prevention and coping levels. Qualitative observations and interviews with a subset of teachers with differing patterns of scores on the stress, coping, and burnout measures were conducted. Teachers were classified into four groups: reactive, detached, engaged, and reflective, based on the patterns of interactions with children observed in their classrooms and the attitudes and values about the teaching profession they reported during interviews.