A1 Refereed original research article in a scientific journal
Finnish student experiences of teachers’ caring
Authors: Hosio, Maarit
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Publication year: 2026
Journal: Social Psychology of Education
Article number: 44
Volume: 29
ISSN: 1381-2890
eISSN: 1573-1928
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11218-026-10217-x
Publication's open availability at the time of reporting: No Open Access
Publication channel's open availability : Partially Open Access publication channel
Web address : https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11218-026-10217-x
This study examined Finnish upper secondary school students’ experiences of teachers’ caring. Caring is seen in personal interactions between students and teachers both in informal encounters or communications and in student-centred, well-constructed learning situations which increase student well-being and school engagement. The data were collected in semi-structured interviews. The analysis was conducted following two dimensions, namely personal caring and caring teaching, which were further divided into categories and subgroups. The process was data-driven for the first dimension, whilst in the second dimension, the grouping followed elements found in previous studies. In the interviews, students provided various descriptions of teachers’ caring actions and provided a complete picture of teacher caring behaviour and situations that were experienced as caring. The results include various themes, e.g. fairness and equality, trust between students and teachers, a good learning atmosphere in the classroom, as well as practices in planning and conducting teaching. As caring is pictured in students’ own words, this article also contributes to current discussions about students’ well-being in schools and may generate ideas for teachers and teacher educators on how to have caring conversations with students and build caring relationships.