The Association between Psychosocial Work Environment and Depressive Symptoms among Korean Teachers

Abstract

Purpose: This study aimed to identify the association between psychosocial work environment and depressive symptoms among Korean teachers. Methods: Data on 235 elementary school teachers and 341 middle and high school teachers was obtained from the 2014 Korean Working Condition Survey. The effect of psychosocial work environment on depressive symptoms was determined by multiple logistic regression analyses. Results: The prevalence of depressive symptoms was 18 % in elementary school teachers and 24 % in middle and high school teachers. When adjusted for demographics and other socio-psychological and environmental factors, 'social community at work' served as a protection factor for Korean teachers' depressive symptoms. In addition, 'cognitive demands' in elementary school teachers and 'social support from supervisors' in middle and high school teachers were found to be predictors of depressive symptoms. Conclusion: Interventions to increase 'social community at work' and 'social support from supervisors', and to decrease 'cognitive demands' may be helpful for Korean teachers at risk of depression.

The Effects of Work Characteristics Related to Work–Life Imbalance on Presenteeism among Female Workers in the Health and Social Work Sectors: Mediation Analysis of Psychological and Physical Health Problems

“…Generally, psychological wellbeing decreases when work demands are high. In a study involving elementary school teachers, it was found that the risk of depression increased as work demands increased [33], but the results of this study differ from the results of other existing studies. The results of this study are similar to those of a study involving married nurses that found subjects to have a positive outlook, despite having a heavy workload [34].…”

“…In other words, psychological wellbeing decreases when the sense of social community at work is low. In a study involving teachers, a strong sense of social community at work was found to be an important predictive factor that decreased the risk of depression, even after controlling for sociodemographic factors and other psychological and social factors [33].…”

Relationship between simultaneous exposure to ergonomic risk factors and work-related lower back pain: a cross-sectional study based on the fourth Korean working conditions survey

“…Age was divided into 5 groups: under 30, 30–39 years, 40–49 years, 50–59 years, and above 60 years. Based on the Korean Standard Occupational Classification (6th revision) [ 25 ], the KWCS data investigated 10 occupation types, and also surveyed soldiers. Occupation was classified into 3 categories: white collar (managers, professionals, technicians and semi-experts, and office workers), service workers (service workers and sales workers), and blue collar (skilled agricultural and fishery workers, functional operators and relevant functional workers, equipment, machinery handlers and assembly workers, and simple laborers).…”