Teacher distress tolerance and willingness to teach children with special educational needs in Nigeria: Teacher job satisfaction as a mediator

Abstract

We examined the association between regular teachers' distress tolerance (tolerance of frustration, ambiguity and discomfort) and their willingness to include children with special educational needs (SENs) in their classes, as well as the mediating function of teacher job satisfaction. We sampled 502 teachers in Anambra State, Nigeria. Our findings revealed that while teachers' tolerance of frustration had significant positive effects on job satisfaction and inclusive education willingness for children with SENs, tolerance of ambiguity did not. Tolerance of emotional discomfort was significantly related to inclusive willingness of teachers. Furthermore, teacher job satisfaction mediated the relationship between tolerance of frustration and their inclusive education willingness but could not mediate that between tolerance of ambiguity and willingness to include SENs. We concluded that tolerance of frustration and discomfort can positively impact teachers' willing efforts for inclusion, highlighting the need to foster the emotional capacity of teachers, and provide supportive structures to enhance teachers' job satisfaction.