Mental Health and Wellbeing of Secondary School Teachers in Malaysia

Abstract

The teaching profession has been consistently ranked as the most stressful job in the world today. Teachers who experience prolonged exposure to high levels of work-related stress can find there to be a detrimental effect on their physical health, mental health, social life, and work performance. This study aims to characterise the mental health and wellbeing of secondary school teachers in Malaysia according to gender and age group. We examined burnout levels among 776 secondary school teachers who were measured across three dimensions (i.e., depersonalisation, emotional exhaustion, and personal accomplishment), as well as their sources of stress, manifestations of stress, and psychological symptoms. The quantitative data analysis revealed that most of the teachers had experienced burnout in terms of their personal accomplishments, work-related stressors, and time management, and that it mostly manifested as fatigue. Overall, the sample of secondary school teachers in Malaysia indicates a risk of poor mental health. Further psychological interventions and self-care programs are suggested to help secondary school teachers cope with the early signs of burnout.

Prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus and impaired fasting glucose, and their associated lifestyle factors among teachers in the CLUSTer cohort

“…In addition, the proportion of teachers who smoke and drink alcohol was also relatively low, as these substances are not common among teachers and both products are strictly prohibited in school compounds. Sleep and acute mental health conditions were also not found to be related to the outcome of interest among teachers in the current study, despite these two lifestyle factors deemed closely related to teachers’ well-being ( Musa, Moy & Wong, 2018 ; Pau et al, 2022 ; Tai, Ng & Lim, 2019 ). These lifestyle factors were also closely associated with waist circumference in the ad hoc analysis ( Table S6 ), suggesting that these factors exacerbated impaired glucose tolerance and ultimately T2DM, rather than being a direct cause ( Barone & Menna-Barreto, 2011 ; Wong et al, 2019 ).…”

“…Teachers are susceptible to occupational illnesses and injuries such as bone or joints, stress, eyesight, and vocal/throat issues because of the nature of their work ( Bhattarai, Bashistha & Acharya, 2019 ). Thus, researchers tend to concentrate on teachers’ well-being and work-related diseases ( Moy et al, 2015 ; Pau et al, 2022 ; Tai, Ng & Lim, 2019 ; Zamri, Moy & Hoe, 2017 ). While chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) can also affect teachers, information on its prevalence is scarce because it is rarely studied among teachers in Malaysia.…”

The psychometric properties of students’ attitudes, coping strategies, and psychological symptoms

“…Rather it has been a norm that most of the offenses committed by the students are typically due to the misuse of cigarettes on campus. The questionnaires were adapted from Pau et al [40] with 0.94 validity value. The CCAPS-62 was based on a 5-Likert scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree), 2 (disagree), 3 (neutral), 4 (agree), and 5 (strongly agree) translated and modified accordingly to the 8 CCAPS-62 sub constructs based on local context of the study.…”

Mental Health Awareness: A Study on Urban Secondary School Teachers in Selangor

“…Having said that, teachers worldwide have reported many factors influencing the severity of mental health issues they suffer. Most teachers experience stress due to time management, too many ad hoc tasks, and work-related issues (Pau et al, 2022). However, in comparison to other countries, Malaysian teachers have limited knowledge of counselling and treatment, when to raise their hands for help, and when to shut down from work.…”