The Effects of Mindfulness Training on Teacher Perception of Stress and Teacher Self-Efficacy

Abstract

Stress is a problem that affects teacher well-being; causes poor performance, teacher turnover, financial and organizational strain; and negatively impacts student outcomes (Greenberg, Brown, & Abenavoli, 2016). Addressing teacher stress is a significant challenge for school leaders with limited resources. Additionally, supporting teacher self-efficacy is an ongoing aspiration as it affects teachers, students, and organizational effectiveness. Furthermore, mindfulness has shown to be an effective means to reduce teacher stress and promote overall well-being by cultivating present moment awareness, emotional regulation, equanimity, and compassion (Abenavoli, Jennings, Greenberg, Harris, & Katz, 2013; Flook Goldberg, Pinger, Bonus, & Davidson, 2013; Jennings et al., 2017; Meiklejohn et al., 2012; Poulin, Mackenzie, Soloway, Karaylos, 2008; Roeser et al., 2013).

The purpose of the study was to examine the differences in teachers’ perception of stress, teacher self-efficacy, and mindfulness after mindfulness training. Thirty teachers in an urban school district, 16 at a high school and 14 at two middle schools, volunteered for the 8-week, 30-minutes per week mindfulness training. In this quasi-experimental study, teachers’ perception of stress, teacher self-efficacy, and mindfulness were measured three times: before, immediately following, and three weeks after mindfulness training.

Results indicated a significant reduction in teachers’ perceptions of stress after mindfulness training, and the reduction maintained for the three-week period following training. No significant differences in teachers’ sense of teacher self-efficacy were found; however, results indicated teachers’ mindfulness increased significantly after mindfulness training. Notably, data analysis also indicated significant increases in teachers’ mindfulness from the end of training to three weeks after mindfulness training.

The positive results from this study were encouraging as the four-hour mindfulness training might be efficacious in reducing teachers’ perception of stress and increasing mindfulness. The positive effects gleaned from training were durable as the perception of stress maintained, and mindfulness improved over the three weeks following training. A short time-frame mindfulness training might have potential to aid school leaders in addressing problems of teacher stress, which is especially problematic in urban school districts.