ROLE OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE TEACHING ENJOYMENT ON BURNOUT AND RESILIENCE: RESULTS FROM EFL TEACHERS

Behnam Aghayani(1*), Samira Mohamadi(2), Forough Rekabizadeh(3), Mahsa Bakhtiari(4),

(1) Independent Researcher, Kermanshah, Iran
(2) PhD student in Applied Linguistics, Arak University, Arak, Iran
(3) Shahid Rajaee Teacher Training University, Tehran, Iran
(4) Islamic Azad University, North Tehran Branch, Tehran, Iran
(*) Corresponding Author

Abstract


Foreign language teachers often face distinct challenges in their professional journey, which can lead to burnout and decreased resilience. Foreign Language Teaching Enjoyment (FLTE) is an emotion that can help teachers overcome such challenges and difficulties. This study firstly examines the relationship between EFL teachers’ FLTE and their burnout, and secondly explores the relationship between EFL teachers’ FLTE and their resilience. The study also investigates the influence of EFL teachers’ FLTE on their burnout. The participants were 204 Iranian EFL teachers, comprising 140 females and 64 males. In the data collection, the participants responded to three online questionnaires, namely the Foreign Language Teaching Enjoyment Scale (FLTES), the Burnout Scale, and the Resilience Scale. The results of Pearson product-moment correlation indicated that EFL teachers’ FLTE was associated with both their burnout and their resilience. Moreover, the regression analysis showed that EFL teachers’ FLTE significantly predicted their burnout. The findings can help teachers set up a successful teaching and learning environment by boosting their sense of well-being. Education stakeholders can also utilize these findings to improve job satisfaction. 


Keywords


burnout, EFL teachers, foreign language teaching enjoyment, FLTE, resilience

Full Text:

PDF

References


Akbari, R., & Eghtesadi Roudi, A. (2020). Reasons of burnout: The case of Iranian English language teachers. Psychological Studies, 65(2), 157-167.‏ https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12646-019-00541-y

Al-Dosari, S. M., Mohsen, M. A., & Curle, S. (2022). Enjoyment in the foreign language teaching environment: Saudi teachers’ perspectives. Psycholinguistics, 32(1), 29-50. https://doi.org/10.31470/2309-1797-2022-32-1-29-50

Amer, S. A., Elotla, S. F., Ameen, A. E., Shah, J., & Fouad, A. M. (2022). Occupational burnout and productivity loss: A cross-sectional study among academic university staff. Frontiers in Public Health, 10, 861674.‏ https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2022.861674

Atmaca, Ç., Rızaoğlu, F., Türkdoğan, T., & Yaylı, D. (2020). An emotion focused approach in predicting teacher burnout and job satisfaction. Teaching and Teacher Education, 90, 103025.‏ https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2020.103025

Azari Noughabi, M., Fekri, N., & Kazemkhah Hasankiadeh, F. (2022). The contribution of psychological wellbeing and emotion-regulation to foreign language teaching enjoyment. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 889133.‏ https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.889133

Beltman, S. (2020). Understanding and examining teacher resilience from multiple perspectives. In C. F. Mansfield (Ed.), Cultivating teacher resilience: International approaches, applications and impact (pp. 11-26). Singapore: Springer.

Beltman, S., Mansfield, C., & Price, A. (2011). Thriving not just surviving: A review of research on teacher resilience. Educational Research Review, 6(3), 185-207. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2011.09.001

Bing, H., Sadjadi, B., Afzali, M., & Fathi, J. (2022). Self-efficacy and emotion regulation as predictors of teacher burnout among English as a foreign language teachers: A structural equation modeling approach. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 900417.‏ https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.900417

Botes, E., Dewaele, J.-M., & Greiff, S. (2021). The development and validation of the short form of the foreign language enjoyment scale. Modern Language Journal, 105(4), 858-876. https://doi.org/10.1111/modl.12741

Brackett, M. A., Palomera, R., Mojsa‐Kaja, J., Reyes, M. R., & Salovey, P. (2010). Emotion‐regulation ability, burnout, and job satisfaction among British secondary‐school teachers. Psychology in the Schools, 47(4), 406-417.‏ https://doi.org/10.1002/pits.20478

Brunetti, G. J. (2006). Resilience under fire: Perspectives on the work of experienced, inner city high school teachers in the United States. Teaching and Teacher Education, 22(7), 812-825.‏ https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2006.04.027

Burić, I., Slišković, A., & Penezić, Z. (2019). Understanding teacher well-being: A cross-lagged analysis of burnout, negative student-related emotions, psychopathological symptoms, and resilience. Educational Psychology, 39(9), 1136–1155. https://doi.org/10.1080/01443410.2019.1577952

Capone, V., Joshanloo, M., & Park, M. S. A. (2019). Burnout, depression, efficacy beliefs, and work-related variables among school teachers. International Journal of Educational Research, 95, 97-108.‏ https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijer.2019.02.001

Day, C., & Gu, Q. (2007). Variations in the conditions for teachers’ professional learning and development: Sustaining commitment and effectiveness over a career. Oxford Review of Education, 33(4), 423-443.‏ https://doi.org/10.1080/03054980701450746

Demirel, E. E., & Cephe, P. T. (2015). Looking into burnout levels among English language instructors. Journal of Language and Linguistic Studies, 11(1), 1-14.‏ https://www.jlls.org/index.php/jlls/article/view/361

Derakhshan, A., Dewaele, J.-M., & Azari Noughabi, M. (2022). Modeling the contribution of resilience, well-being, and L2 grit to foreign language teaching enjoyment among Iranian English language teachers. System, 109, 102890.‏ https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2022.102890

Dewaele, J.-M., & MacIntyre, P. D. (2014). The two faces of Janus? Anxiety and enjoyment in the foreign language classroom. Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, 4(2), 237-274.‏ https://doi.org/10.14746/ssllt.2014.4.2.5

Dewaele, J.-M., MacIntyre, P. D., Boudreau, C., & Dewaele, L. (2016). Do girls have all the fun? Anxiety and enjoyment in the foreign language classroom. Theory and Practice of Second Language Acquisition, 2(1), 41-63.‏ https://journals.us.edu.pl/index.php/TAPSLA/article/view/3941/3090

Dewaele, J.-M., Witney, J., Saito, K., & Dewaele, L. (2018). Foreign language enjoyment and anxiety: The effect of teacher and learner variables. Language Teaching Research, 22(6), 676-697.‏ https://doi.org/10.1177/1362168817692161

Ding, X., De Costa, P. I., & Tian, G. (2022). Spiral emotion labor and teacher development sustainability: A longitudinal case study of veteran college English lecturers in China. Sustainability, 14(3), 1455.‏ https://doi.org/10.3390/su14031455

Ding, X., Liu, Y., & Peng, J. E. (2023). Straddling burnout and resilience: A Q methodology study among high school EFL teachers. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 1-18. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2023.2193171

Fathi, J., & Naderi, M. (2022). Testing a structural model of teacher resilience, foreign language teaching enjoyment, and teaching engagement in an EFL context. Teaching English Language, 16(2), 255-284.‏ https://doi.org/10.22132/tel.2022.159457

Fathi, J., & Saeedian, A. (2020). A structural model of teacher self-efficacy, resilience, and burnout among Iranian EFL teachers. Iranian Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 9(2), 14-28.‏ https://dorl.net/dor/20.1001.1.24763187.2020.9.2.2.1

Fathi, J., Greenier, V., & Derakhshan, A. (2021). Self-efficacy, reflection, and burnout among Iranian EFL teachers: The mediating role of emotion regulation. Iranian Journal of Language Teaching Research, 9(2), 13-37.‏ https://ijltr.urmia.ac.ir/article_121043.html

Flores, M. A. (2018). Teacher resilience in adverse contexts: Issues of professionalism and professional identity. In M. Wosnitza, F. Peixoto, S. Beltman, & C. F. Mansfield (Eds.), Resilience in education: Concepts, contexts and connections (pp. 167-184). New York, NY: Springer.

Ghasemzadeh, S., Nemati, M., & Fathi, J. (2019). Teacher self-efficacy and reflection as predictors of teacher burnout: An investigation of Iranian English language teachers. Issues in Language Teaching, 8(2), 25-50.‏ https://doi.org/10.22054/ilt.2020.49009.451

Gold, Y., & Roth, R. A. (2013). Teachers managing stress & preventing burnout. London: Routledge.

Gu, Q., & Day, C. (2013). Challenges to teacher resilience: Conditions count. British Educational Research Journal, 39(1), 22-44. https://doi.org/10.1080/01411926.2011.623152

Han, W. (2022). Chinese English as a foreign language teachers’ job satisfaction, resilience, and their psychological well-being. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 800417.‏ https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.800417

Hiver, P. (2015). Once burned, twice shy: The dynamic development of system immunity in teachers. In Z. Dörnyei (Ed.), Motivational dynamics in language learning (pp. 214–237). Bristol: Multilingual Matters.

Hiver, P. (2018). Teachstrong: The power of teacher resilience for second language practitioners. In S. Mercer, & A. Kostoulas (Eds.), Language teacher psychology (pp. 231-246). Bristol: Multilingual Matters.

Hong, J. Y. (2012). Why do some beginning teachers leave the school, and others stay? Understanding teacher resilience through psychological lenses. Teachers and Teaching, 18(4), 417-440.‏ https://doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2012.696044

Jin, Y., & Zhang, L. J. (2021). The dimensions of foreign language classroom enjoyment and their effect on foreign language achievement. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 24(7), 948-962. https://doi.org/10.1080/13670050.2018.1526253

Kassandrinou, M., Lainidi, O., Mouratidis, C., & Montgomery, A. (2023). Employee silence, job burnout and job engagement among teachers: the mediational role of psychological safety. Health Psychology and Behavioral Medicine, 11(1), 2213302.‏ https://doi.org/10.1080/21642850.2023.2213302

Kavgaci, H. (2022). The relationship between psychological resilience, teachers’ self-efficacy and attitudes towards teaching profession: A path analysis. International Journal of Progressive Education, 18(3), 278-296.‏ https://doi.org/10.29329/ijpe.2022.439.18

Keller, M. M., Chang, M.-L., Becker, E. S., Goetz, T., & Frenzel, A. C. (2014). Teachers’ emotional experiences and exhaustion as predictors of emotional labor in the classroom: An experience sampling study. Frontiers in Psychology, 5, 1–10. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2014.01442

King, J., Dewaele, J.-M., & Gkonou, C. (2020). Concluding thoughts on the emotional rollercoaster of language teaching. In C. Gkonou, J.-M. Dewaele, & J. King (Eds.), The emotional rollercoaster of language (pp. 288-295). Bristol: Multilingual Matters.

Kyriacou, C. (2015). Teacher stress and burnout: Methodological perspectives.‏ In J. D. Wright (Ed.), International encyclopedia of the social & behavioral sciences (2nd ed., pp. 72-74). Elsevier.

Liu, G. Z., Fathi, J., & Rahimi, M. (2023). Enhancing EFL learners’ intercultural communicative effectiveness through telecollaboration with native and non-native speakers of English. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 1-31.‏ https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2022.2164778

Madigan, D. J., & Kim, L. E. (2021). Does teacher burnout affect students? A systematic review of its association with academic achievement and student-reported outcomes. International Journal of Educational Research, 105, 101714.‏ https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijer.2020.101714

Madigan, D. J., Kim, L. E., Glandorf, H. L., & Kavanagh, O. (2023). Teacher burnout and physical health: A systematic review. International Journal of Educational Research, 119, 102173.‏ https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijer.2023.102173

Mahmoodi, M. H., & Ghaslani, R. (2014). Relationship among Iranian EFL teachers’ emotional intelligence, reflectivity and burnout. Iranian Journal of Applied Language Studies, 6(1), 89-116.‏ https://doi.org/10.22111/ijals.2014.1993

Mahmoodi-Shahrebabaki, M. (2019). Teacher burnout. In J. I. Liontas & M. DelliCarpini (Eds.), The TESOL encyclopedia of English language teaching (pp. 1-8). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley Blackwell.

Maslach, C., & Jackson, S. E. (1981). The measurement of experienced burnout. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 2(2), 99-113.‏ https://doi.org/10.1002/job.4030020205

Maslach, C., & Leiter, M. P. (1999). Teacher burnout: A research agenda. In R. Vandenberghe, & A. M. Huberman (Eds.), Understanding and preventing teacher burnout: A sourcebook of international research and practice (pp. 295–303). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Maslach, C., & Leiter, M. P. (2016a). Understanding the burnout experience: Recent research and its implications for psychiatry. World Psychiatry, 15(2), 103-111. https://doi.org/10.1002/wps.20311

Maslach, C., & Leiter, M. P. (2016b). Burnout. In G. Fink (Ed.), Stress: Concepts, cognition, emotion, and behavior (pp. 351-357). Cambridge: Academic Press.‏

Maslach, C., Schaufeli, W. B., & Leiter, M. P. (2001). Job burnout. Annual Review of Psychology, 52(1), 397-422.‏ https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.52.1.397

Mierzwa, E. (2019). Foreign language learning and teaching enjoyment: Teachers’ perspectives. Journal of Education, Culture and Society, 10(2), 170-188. https://doi.org/10.15503/jecs20192.170.188

Momenzadeh, S. E., Pishghadam, R., & Naji Meidani, E. (2023). Examining the role of active/passive motivation in EFL teachers’ burnout and efficacy. Language Related Research, 14(1), 1-33.‏ https://lrr.modares.ac.ir/article-14-62760-en.pdf

Moskowitz, S., & Dewaele, J.-M. (2021). Is teacher happiness contagious? A study of the link between perceptions of language teacher happiness and student self-reported attitudes and motivation. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 15(2), 117-130. https://doi.org/10.1080/17501229.2019.1707205

Polat, D. D., & İskender, M. (2018). Exploring teachers’ resilience in relation to job satisfaction, burnout, organizational commitment and perception of organizational climate. International Journal of Psychology and Educational Studies, 5(3), 1-13.‏ https://doi.org/10.17220/ijpes.2018.03.001

Proietti Ergün, A. L., & Dewaele, J.-M. (2021). Do well-being and resilience predict the foreign language teaching enjoyment of teachers of Italian? System, 99, 102506.‏ https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2021.102506

Razmjoo, S. A., & Ayoobiyan, H. (2019). On the relationship between teacher resilience and self-efficacy: The case of Iranian EFL teachers. Two Quarterly Journal of English Language Teaching and Learning University of Tabriz, 11(23), 277-292.‏ https://elt.tabrizu.ac.ir/article_8927.html

Rezazadeh, K., Janebi Enayat, M., & Poorebrahim, F. (2023). Exploring bilingual EFL teacher resilience in the Iranian non-profit and state schools: A mixed-methods study. Asian-Pacific Journal of Second and Foreign Language Education, 8(1), 1-24. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40862-023-00196-3

Richards, J. C. (2022). Exploring emotions in language teaching. RELC Journal, 53(1), 225-239.‏ https://doi.org/10.1177/0033688220927531

Richards, R., Hemphill, M., & Templin, T. (2018). Personal and contextual factors related to teachers’ experience with stress and burnout. Teachers and Teaching, 24(7), 768-787.‏ https://doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2018.1476337

Richardson, G. E. (2002). The metatheory of resilience and resiliency. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 58(3), 307-321.‏ https://doi.org/10.1002/jclp.10020

Roeser, R. W., Schonert-Reichl, K. A., Jha, A., Cullen, M., Wallace, L., Wilensky, R., Oberle, E., Thomson, K., Taylor, C., & Harrison, J. (2013). Mindfulness training and reductions in teacher stress and burnout: Results from two randomized, waitlist-control field trials. Journal of Educational Psychology, 105(3), 787-804. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0032093

Romano, L., Consiglio, P., Angelini, G., & Fiorilli, C. (2021). Between academic resilience and burnout: The moderating role of satisfaction on school context relationships. European Journal of Investigation in Health, Psychology and Education, 11(3), 770-780.‏ https://doi.org/10.3390/ejihpe11030055

Safari, I. (2020). A study on the relationship between burnout and job satisfaction of Iranian EFL teachers working in universities and schools. Journal on Efficiency and Responsibility in Education and Science, 13(4), 164-173.‏ https://doi.org/10.7160/eriesj.2020.130401

Salmela-Aro, K., Hietajärvi, L., & Lonka, K. (2019). Work burnout and engagement profiles among teachers. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 2254.‏ https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02254

Schaufeli, W. B., Leiter, M. P., & Maslach, C. (2009). Burnout: 35 years of research and practice. Career Development International, 14(3), 204-220.‏ https://doi.org/10.1108/13620430910966406

Schaufeli, W. B., Maslach, C., & Marek, T. (2017). The future of burnout. In W. B., Schaufeli, C., Maslach & T. Marek, (Eds.), Professional burnout: Recent developments in theory and research (pp. 253–259). London: Routledge.

Seligman, M. E. P. (2011). Flourish: A visionary new understanding of happiness and well-being. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster.‏

Skaalvik, E. M., & Skaalvik, S. (2020). Teacher burnout: Relations between dimensions of burnout, perceived school context, job satisfaction and motivation for teaching. A longitudinal study. Teachers and Teaching, 26(7-8), 602-616.‏ https://doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2021.1913404

Smith, K., & Ulvik, M. (2017). Leaving teaching: Lack of resilience or sign of agency? Teachers and Teaching, 23(8), 928-945.‏ https://doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2017.1358706

Teles, R., Valle, A., Rodríguez, S., Piñeiro, I., & Regueiro, B. (2020). Perceived stress and indicators of burnout in teachers at Portuguese higher education institutions (HEI). International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(9), 3248.‏ https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17093248

Thumvichit, A. (2022). Enjoyment in language teaching: a study into EFL teachers’ subjectivities. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching. https://doi.org/10.1515/iral-2022-0087

Wang, Y., Derakhshan, A., & Rahimpour, H. (2022). Developing resilience among Chinese and Iranian EFL teachers: A multi-dimensional cross-cultural study. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 1-18.‏ https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2022.2042540

Wei, R., Yang, X., & Wang, J. (2023). Do teachers’ well-being and resilience predict their foreign language teaching enjoyment (FLTE)? Applied Linguistics Review. https://doi.org/10.1515/applirev-2022-0115

Wolf, S., Torrente, C., Frisoli, P., Weisenhorn, N., Shivshanker, A., Annan, J., & Aber, J. L. (2015). Preliminary impacts of the learning to read in a healing classroom intervention on teacher well-being in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Teaching and Teacher Education, 52, 24–36. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2015.08.002

Wu, D. (2020). Relationship between job burnout and mental health of teachers under work stress. Revista Argentina de Clínica Psicológica, 29(1), 310. https://doi.org/10.24205/03276716.2020.41

Xie, F. (2021). A study on Chinese EFL teachers’ work engagement: The predictability power of emotion regulation and teacher resilience. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 735969.‏ https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.735969

Xue, L. (2021). Challenges and resilience-building: A narrative inquiry study on a mid-career Chinese EFL teacher. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 758925. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.758925

Yang, S., Azari Noughabi, M., Botes, E., & Dewaele, J.-M. (2023). Let’s get positive: How foreign language teaching enjoyment can create a positive feedback loop. Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, 13(1), 17-38.‏ https://doi.org/10.14746/ssllt.32358

Yu, X., Wang, Y., & Liu, F. (2022). Language learning motivation and burnout among English as a foreign language undergraduates: The moderating role of maladaptive emotion regulation strategies. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 808118.‏ https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.808118

Zeng, Y. (2021). A review of foreign language enjoyment and engagement. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 737613. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.737613

Zhang, L. (2023). Reviewing the effect of teachers’ resilience and wellbeing on their foreign language teaching enjoyment. Frontiers in Psychology, 14.‏ https://doi.org/10.3389%2Ffpsyg.2023.1187468

Zhang, L. J., Fathi, J., & Mohammaddokht, F. (2023). Predicting teaching enjoyment from teachers’ perceived school climate, self-efficacy, and psychological wellbeing at work: EFL teachers. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 130(5), 2269-2299. https://doi.org/10.1177/00315125231182269

Zhang, M. (2021). EFL/ESL teacher’s resilience, academic buoyancy, care, and their impact on students’ engagement: A theoretical review. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 731859.‏ https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.731859




DOI: https://doi.org/10.24071/llt.v27i1.8018

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright (c) 2024 Behnam Aghayani, Samira Mohamadi, Forough Rekabizadeh, Mahsa Bakhtiari

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Indexed and abstracted in:

     

 

 

LLT Journal Sinta 2 Certificate (S2 = Level 2)

We would like to inform you that LLT Journal: A Journal on Language and Language Teaching has been nationally accredited Sinta 2 by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia based on the decree  No. Surat Keputusan 158/E/KPT/2021. Validity for 5 years: Vol 23 No 1, 2020 till Vol 27 No 2, 2024

  

 

This work is licensed under CC BY-SA.

Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License

 

Free counters!


 LLT Journal: A Journal on Language and Language Teaching, DOI: https://doi.org/10.24071/llt, e-ISSN 2579-9533 and p-ISSN 1410-7201is published twice a year, namely in April and October by the English Language Education Study Programme of Teacher Training and Education Faculty of Sanata Dharma University, Yogyakarta, Indonesia.