Burnout, flourishing and rustout: examining the occupational well-being of higher education-based teacher educators in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

Teacher educators (TEs) prepare future teachers for the early childhood, primary, secondary and further education and training sectors. Many TEs are second-career researchers, having worked in the classroom or leadership roles before moving to initial teacher education (ITE) within a tertiary-level setting. Their work involves the traditional academic duties of research, teaching, service, and pre-service teachers' supervision, mentoring, and support. TEs navigate their work against the backdrop of decreasing higher education funding but increasing job demands in Ireland and the United Kingdom (UK). These demands include, but are not limited to, increasing student numbers to meet the teacher retention crisis, heavy administrative tasks and high-stakes external inspection processes. In addition, most higher education-based TEs are under pressure to produce research that is both impactful for the education sector and considered 'quality' within metrics-driven universities. However, there is often limited time for this work within the busy ITE sector. More broadly, there is often a lack of understanding of the complexity of the TE role, and their work can be undervalued in research-driven university systems. Despite these demands, little attention has been paid to the mental health challenges faced by TEs in Ireland and the UK. Previous research on educators' well-being has focused on school-based teachers and school leaders, with limited research on higher education academics. This research programme investigates the occupational well-being of higher education-based teacher educators in Ireland and the United Kingdom, focusing on burnout, flourishing, and rustout. It examined the prevalence, causes, and consequences of burnout and rustout, as well as the conditions and practices that support flourishing within this cohort. A sequential mixed-methods design was adopted, beginning with a narrative review, framed by an adapted PICo approach. The empirical phase progressed through a series of interrelated studies in which earlier findings informed subsequent research questions and design. Quantitative and qualitative methods included the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory, open-ended survey responses from 154 participants, semi-structured in-depth interviews with 14 participants, and follow up member-checking interviews with 5 participants. The narrative review reveals several limitations in the field of research before the author's publications. These limitations included (1) limited studies on the well-being of HEI-based TEs (2) few studies on the causes of burnout among HEI-based TEs, (3) an absence of studies that explored the continuum of experiences, from burnout to flourishing to rustout, (4) limited mixed methods studies, (5) the absence of cross-cultural studies. The author's portfolio of publications contribute to the research by identifying the prevalence and nature of burnout among HEI-based TEs in Ireland and the UK. It identifies the common causes of burnout and explores how external accountability systems, such as Ofsted inspections in England, contribute to mental strain. It addresses the causes of rustout in this cohort and considers how underutilisation affects TEs' sense of professional satisfaction and well-being. Finally, this research identifies the protective factors that contribute to the flourishing of HEI-based TEs in Ireland and the UK, and it considers how these can be supported through institutional policy and practice. The findings across these four articles have significant implications for theoretical understanding and practical interventions in supporting TEs' occupational well-being, advancing knowledge in the field. First, the articles address mental health in academia. Despite its importance, this is still an under-researched area and often taboo topic. This research squarely addresses this lacuna and brings TEs' narratives to the fore. Second, this research demonstrates the distinction between burnout and rustout in TEs, which adds nuance to the literacy on mental health in the workplace and psychological responses to environmental demands. Third, the research broadens the psychosocial conceptual framework used to explore occupational well-being in education. It may have particular value for exploring the experiences of school-based teachers. In addition, the use of the PERMA framework to examine TE well-being contributes to positive psychology literature by applying it to a higher education context where it has received limited use and provides a more holistic understanding of experiences. At a practical level, the findings and recommendations presented in this work contribute to a deeper understanding of how to support the health and well-being of TEs. In turn, such support may help to reduce attrition from the field, enhance professional sustainability, and ensure that TEs are better equipped to manage the demands of their work. Therefore, the findings of this programme of research have implications for supporting the provision of high-quality initial teacher education. More broadly, the findings have relevance for employers concerned with staff well-being and for individuals seeking to understand how they can avoid the extremes of burnout and rustout, thereby sustaining their professional well-being.

Author dc:creator

• Fitzsimons, Sabrina

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• D.S. Smith and L. Boag

• Occupational well-being
• Burnout
• Rustout
• PERMA
• Teacher educators
• Initial teacher education

Language dc:language

en

Identifier

oai:rgu-repository.worktribe.com:3476079
https://doi.org/10.48526/rgu-wt-3476079

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:rgu-repository.worktribe.com:3476079