A1 Refereed original research article in a scientific journal

What challenges higher education teachers’ teaching-related wellbeing?




AuthorsVirtanen, Viivi; Hailikari, Telle; Murtonen, Mari; Parpala, Anna; Postareff, Liisa

PublisherInforma UK Limited

Publication year2025

Journal: Teacher Development

ISSN1366-4530

eISSN1747-5120

DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1080/13664530.2025.2537056

Publication's open availability at the time of reportingNo Open Access

Publication channel's open availability Partially Open Access publication channel

Web address https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13664530.2025.2537056


Abstract

The demands of teaching have increased in higher education and resulted in a high incidence of academic staff burnout, making teachers’ wellbeing a critical concern. This study explored the challenges to university teachers’ psychological wellbeing using the job demands-–resources (JD-R) framework. The authors performed content analysis on the interviews of 32 academics and found that negative experiences affecting wellbeing reflected the three dimensions of burnout: inefficacy, exhaustion, and cynicism. Person-oriented analysis identified three profiles: 1) High, 2) Moderate, and 3) Low levels of teaching-related wellbeing. Low wellbeing was associated with an imbalance between job demands and resources. High workload and lack of social support were major job demands, while pedagogical competence, adequate social support, and personal resources, such as self-compassion, were key job resources positively influencing wellbeing. This study adds to the literature on academic wellbeing by identifying specific job demands and resources related to the wellbeing of university teachers.


Funding information in the publication
This work was supported by the Opetus- ja Kulttuuriministeriö [199/523/2016].


Last updated on 29/01/2026 03:00:02 PM