{"id":{"repo_id":"utc","oai_identifier":"oai:scholar.utc.edu:theses-2215"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/utc/oai:scholar.utc.edu:theses-2215","repository":{"repo_id":"utc","name":"University of Tennessee - Chattanooga","base_url":"https://scholar.utc.edu/do/oai/"},"display":{"title":"The influence of trauma-informed self-care practices on compassion fatigue, secondary traumatic stress, and burnout among educators","abstract":"Educators play a pivotal role in supporting students who have experienced trauma, yet the emotional toll of this work is often underestimated. This mixed-methods study examined the influence of trauma-informed self-care (TISC) practices on compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue, secondary traumatic stress (STS), and burnout among K–12 educators in a large southeastern Tennessee district, including Priority Schools serving high-poverty communities. A total of 157 educators were surveyed, while 32 educators participated in focus groups to provide deeper insight into self-care supports. Quantitative analyses revealed that higher levels of TISC engagement were significantly associated with increased compassion satisfaction and personal accomplishment, and reduced compassion fatigue and emotional exhaustion. However, TISC practices did not significantly reduce STS, suggesting limits to the effectiveness of individual self-care in addressing vicarious trauma. Qualitative findings underscored educators’ calls for systemic supports such as administrative prioritization of mental health, peer networks, and embedded professional learning to sustain their well-being and professional resilience. Together, the results highlight both the protective role of trauma-informed self-care and the need for organizational change to address educator burnout and retention, particularly in post-pandemic contexts. Implications include the integration of TISC into professional development and policy initiatives to enhance teacher well-being, strengthen student–teacher relationships, and ultimately improve student outcomes.","abstract_html":"Educators play a pivotal role in supporting students who have experienced trauma, yet the emotional toll of this work is often underestimated. This mixed-methods study examined the influence of trauma-informed self-care (TISC) practices on compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue, secondary traumatic stress (STS), and burnout among K–12 educators in a large southeastern Tennessee district, including Priority Schools serving high-poverty communities. A total of 157 educators were surveyed, while 32 educators participated in focus groups to provide deeper insight into self-care supports. Quantitative analyses revealed that higher levels of TISC engagement were significantly associated with increased compassion satisfaction and personal accomplishment, and reduced compassion fatigue and emotional exhaustion. However, TISC practices did not significantly reduce STS, suggesting limits to the effectiveness of individual self-care in addressing vicarious trauma. Qualitative findings underscored educators’ calls for systemic supports such as administrative prioritization of mental health, peer networks, and embedded professional learning to sustain their well-being and professional resilience. Together, the results highlight both the protective role of trauma-informed self-care and the need for organizational change to address educator burnout and retention, particularly in post-pandemic contexts. Implications include the integration of TISC into professional development and policy initiatives to enhance teacher well-being, strengthen student–teacher relationships, and ultimately improve student outcomes.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Martin, Giitoun Belinda"],"institution":"University of Tennessee at Chattanooga","degree_name":null,"degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Rausch, David W.","Crawford, Elizabeth K.; Pratt, Allen; Williamson, Cindy T.","College of Health, Education, and Professional Studies"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":null,"date_issued":"","date_published":null,"updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:47:28Z","subjects":["Burn out (Psychology)","Secondary traumatic stress","Trauma-informed pedagogy"],"languages":["English","eng"],"rights":[],"rights_urls":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://scholar.utc.edu/theses/1027","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Rausch, David W.","Crawford, Elizabeth K.; Pratt, Allen; Williamson, Cindy T.","College of Health, Education, and Professional Studies"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Martin, Giitoun Belinda"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2025-12-01T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["University of Tennessee at Chattanooga","Chattanooga (Tenn.)"]},{"key":"dc:relation","label":"Dc Relation","values":["Masters Theses and Doctoral Dissertations"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Doctoral dissertations","Text"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Burn out (Psychology)","Secondary traumatic stress","Trauma-informed pedagogy"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["English","eng"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://scholar.utc.edu/theses/1027"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description","label":"Description","values":["Dept. of Applied Leadership and Learning","Ph. D.; A dissertation submitted to the faculty of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy."]},{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Educators play a pivotal role in supporting students who have experienced trauma, yet the emotional toll of this work is often underestimated. This mixed-methods study examined the influence of trauma-informed self-care (TISC) practices on compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue, secondary traumatic stress (STS), and burnout among K–12 educators in a large southeastern Tennessee district, including Priority Schools serving high-poverty communities. A total of 157 educators were surveyed, while 32 educators participated in focus groups to provide deeper insight into self-care supports. Quantitative analyses revealed that higher levels of TISC engagement were significantly associated with increased compassion satisfaction and personal accomplishment, and reduced compassion fatigue and emotional exhaustion. However, TISC practices did not significantly reduce STS, suggesting limits to the effectiveness of individual self-care in addressing vicarious trauma. Qualitative findings underscored educators’ calls for systemic supports such as administrative prioritization of mental health, peer networks, and embedded professional learning to sustain their well-being and professional resilience. Together, the results highlight both the protective role of trauma-informed self-care and the need for organizational change to address educator burnout and retention, particularly in post-pandemic contexts. Implications include the integration of TISC into professional development and policy initiatives to enhance teacher well-being, strengthen student–teacher relationships, and ultimately improve student outcomes."]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["The influence of trauma-informed self-care practices on compassion fatigue, secondary traumatic stress, and burnout among educators"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Rausch, David W.","Crawford, Elizabeth K.; Pratt, Allen; Williamson, Cindy T.","College of Health, Education, and Professional Studies"],"dc:creator":["Martin, Giitoun Belinda"],"dc:date":["2025-12-01T08:00:00Z"],"dc:description":["Dept. of Applied Leadership and Learning","Ph. D.; A dissertation submitted to the faculty of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy."],"dc:description.abstract":["Educators play a pivotal role in supporting students who have experienced trauma, yet the emotional toll of this work is often underestimated. This mixed-methods study examined the influence of trauma-informed self-care (TISC) practices on compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue, secondary traumatic stress (STS), and burnout among K–12 educators in a large southeastern Tennessee district, including Priority Schools serving high-poverty communities. A total of 157 educators were surveyed, while 32 educators participated in focus groups to provide deeper insight into self-care supports. Quantitative analyses revealed that higher levels of TISC engagement were significantly associated with increased compassion satisfaction and personal accomplishment, and reduced compassion fatigue and emotional exhaustion. However, TISC practices did not significantly reduce STS, suggesting limits to the effectiveness of individual self-care in addressing vicarious trauma. Qualitative findings underscored educators’ calls for systemic supports such as administrative prioritization of mental health, peer networks, and embedded professional learning to sustain their well-being and professional resilience. Together, the results highlight both the protective role of trauma-informed self-care and the need for organizational change to address educator burnout and retention, particularly in post-pandemic contexts. Implications include the integration of TISC into professional development and policy initiatives to enhance teacher well-being, strengthen student–teacher relationships, and ultimately improve student outcomes."],"dc:identifier":["https://scholar.utc.edu/theses/1027"],"dc:language":["English","eng"],"dc:publisher":["University of Tennessee at Chattanooga","Chattanooga (Tenn.)"],"dc:relation":["Masters Theses and Doctoral Dissertations"],"dc:rights":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"],"dc:subject":["Burn out (Psychology)","Secondary traumatic stress","Trauma-informed pedagogy"],"dc:title":["The influence of trauma-informed self-care practices on compassion fatigue, secondary traumatic stress, and burnout among educators"],"dc:type":["Doctoral dissertations","Text"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:47:28Z"}