Considering the demanding and stressful nature of the teaching profession in general and foreign language teaching in particular, teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL) are prone to experience burnout, which may result in adverse consequences for not only teachers but also their students. Therefore, it is important to understand what factors can prevent EFL teachers from burnout. The present study investigated the roles of three individual difference factors, namely, growth teaching mindset, teaching grit, and emotion regulation in EFL teachers’ burnout. The data were collected from 218 EFL teachers through convenience sampling. The results of regression analysis and relative weight analysis indicated that growth teaching mindset and teaching grit negatively predicted burnout. In addition, while reappraisal emotion regulation strategies were negative predictors of teachers’ burnout, suppression strategies were positive predictors of burnout. Implications regarding how to protect teachers against burnout are presented based on the findings of the study.
AkbariR.EghtesadiRoudi A. (2020). Reasons of burnout: The case of Iranian English language teachers. Psychological Studies, 65, 157–167.
2.
AlarconG.EschlemanK.J.BowlingN.A. (2009). Relationships between personality variables and burnout: A meta-analysis. Work and Stress, 23, 244–263.
3.
Azari NoughabiM.GhonsoolyB.JahedizadehS. (2022). Modeling the associations between EFL teachers’ immunity, L2 grit, and work engagement. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development. Advance online publication. http://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2022.2088766
4.
BanduraA. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. W.H. Freeman.
5.
BaraquiaL.G. (2020). Development of a Teacher Grit Scale (TGS): Predicting the performance of educators in the Philippines. The New Educational Review, 60, 165–177.
6.
Bermejo-ToroL.Prieto-UrsúaM.HernándezV. (2016). Towards a model of teacher well-being: Personal and job resources involved in teacher burnout and engagement. Educational Psychology, 36, 481–501.
7.
BorgS. (2006). The distinctive characteristics of foreign language teachers. Language Teaching Research, 10, 3–31.
8.
BrackettM.A.PalomeraR.Mojsa-KajaJ.ReyesM.R.SaloveyP. (2010). Emotion-regulation ability, burnout, and job satisfaction among British secondary-school teachers. Psychology in the Schools, 47, 406–417.
9.
BraunS.S.Schonert-ReichlK.A.RoeserR.W. (2020). Effects of teachers’ emotion regulation, burnout, and life satisfaction on student well-being. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 69, 101151.
10.
BrotheridgeC.M.LeeR.T. (2006). We are family: Congruity between organizational and family functioning constructs. Human Relations, 59(1), 141–161.
11.
BuiP.PongsakdiN.McMullenJ.LehtinenE.Hannula-SormunenM.M. (2023). A systematic review of mindset interventions in mathematics classrooms: What works and what does not?Educational Research Review, 40, 100554.
12.
BurićI.FrenzelA.C. (2021). Teacher emotional labour, instructional strategies, and students’ academic engagement: A multilevel analysis. Teachers and Teaching, 27, 335–352.
13.
CaponeV.JoshanlooM.ParkM.S.A. (2019). Burnout, depression, efficacy beliefs, and work-related variables among school teachers. International Journal of Educational Research, 95, 97–108.
14.
ChangM.L. (2009). An appraisal perspective of teacher burnout: Examining the emotional work of teachers. Educational Psychology Review, 21, 193–218.
15.
ChangM.L. (2020). Emotion display rules, emotion regulation, and teacher burnout. Frontiers in Education, 5, 1–11.
16.
ChenJ. (2021). Refining the teacher emotion model: Evidence from a review of literature published between 1985 and 2019. Cambridge Journal of Education, 51, 327–357.
17.
ChuY.S.OhW.O.ParkI.T.LeeA.JungM.J. (2021). Pediatric nurses’ grit and nursing intention during the COVID-19 pandemic: Mediating and moderating effects of mindset and psychological collectivism. Child Health Nursing Research, 27, 395–403.
18.
CormierD.L.DunnJ.G.DunnJ.C. (2019). Examining the domain specificity of grit. Personality and Individual Differences, 139, 349–354.
19.
CortezA.R.WinerL.K.KassamA.F., et al. (2020). Exploring the relationship between burnout and grit during general surgery residency: A longitudinal, single-institution analysis. The American Journal of Surgery, 219, 322–327.
20.
DerakhshanA.DewaeleJ.M.Azari NoughabiM. (2022). Modeling the contribution of resilience, well-being, and L2 grit to foreign language teaching enjoyment among Iranian English language teachers. System, 109, 102890.
21.
DingX.LiuY.PengJ.E. (2023). Straddling burnout and resilience: A Q methodology study among high school EFL teachers. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development. Advance online publication. http://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2023.2193171
22.
DuckworthA.L.PetersonC.MatthewsM.D.KellyD.R. (2007). Grit: Perseverance and passion for long-term goals. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 92, 1087–1101.
23.
DuckworthA.L.QuinnP.D.SeligmanM.E. (2009). Positive predictors of teacher effectiveness. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 4, 540–547.
24.
DunfordB.B.ShippA.J.BossR.W.AngermeierI.BossA.D. (2012). Is burnout static or dynamic? A career transition perspective of employee burnout trajectories. Journal of Applied Psychology, 97, 637–650.
25.
DweckC.S. (2017). Mindset: The new psychology of success. Random House.
26.
DweckC.S.WaltonG.M.CohenG.L. (2014). Academic tenacity: Mindsets and skills that promote long-term learning. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
27.
DweckC.S.YeagerD.S. (2019). Mindsets: A view from two eras. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 14, 481–496.
28.
Elahi ShirvanM.TaherianT.ShahnamaM.YazdanmehrE. (2021). A longitudinal study of foreign language enjoyment and L2 grit: A latent growth curve modeling. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 720326.
29.
FabelicoF.AfallaB. (2020). Perseverance and passion in the teaching profession: Teachers’ grit, self-efficacy, burnout, and performance. Journal of Critical Reviews, 7, 108–119.
30.
FathiJ.HejaziS.Y. (2023). Ideal L2 self and foreign language achievement: The mediating roles of L2 grit and foreign language enjoyment. Current Psychology. Advance online publication. http://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-023-05187-8
31.
FathiJ.GreenierV.DerakhshanA. (2021). Self-efficacy, reflection, and burnout among Iranian EFL teachers: The mediating role of emotion regulation. Iranian Journal of Language Teaching Research, 9, 13–37.
32.
FathiJ.ZhangL.J.ArefianM.H. (2023). Testing a model of EFL teachers’ work engagement: The roles of teachers’ professional identity, L2 grit, and foreign language teaching enjoyment. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching. Advance online publication. http://doi.org/10.1515/iral-2023-0024
33.
FivesH.BuehlM.M. (2008). What do teachers believe? Developing a framework for examining beliefs about teachers’ knowledge and ability. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 33, 134–176.
34.
FrondozoC.E.KingR.B.NalipayM.J.N.MordenoI.G. (2022). Mindsets matter for teachers, too: Growth mindset about teaching ability predicts teachers’ enjoyment and engagement. Current Psychology, 41, 5030–5033.
35.
GhanizadehA.GhonsoolyB. (2014). A tripartite model of EFL teacher attributions, burnout, and self-regulation: Toward the prospects of effective teaching. Educational Research for Policy and Practice, 13, 145–166. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10671-013-9155-3
36.
GhanizadehA.JahedizadehS. (2016). EFL teachers’ teaching style, creativity, and burnout: A path analysis approach. Cogent Education, 3, 1151997.
37.
GhanizadehA.RoyaeiN. (2015). Emotional facet of language teaching: Emotion regulation and emotional labor strategies as predictors of teacher burnout. International Journal of Pedagogies and Learning, 10, 139–150.
38.
GluschkoffK. (2017). Psychosocial work characteristics, recovery, and health-related outcomes in teaching. Doctoral dissertation, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.
39.
GreenierV.DerakhshanA.FathiJ. (2021). Emotion regulation and psychological well-being in teacher work engagement: A case of British and Iranian English language teachers. System, 97, 102446.
40.
GrossJ.J. (1998). Antecedent-and response-focused emotion regulation: Divergent consequences for experience, expression, and physiology. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 74, 224–237.
41.
GrossJ.J. (2002). Emotion regulation: Affective, cognitive, and social consequences. Psychophysiology, 39, 281–291.
42.
GrossJ.J.JohnO.P. (2003). Individual differences in two emotion regulation processes: Implications for affect, relationships, and well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 85, 348–362.
43.
HargreavesA. (2001). Emotional geographies of teaching. Teachers College Record, 103, 1056–1080.
44.
HejaziS.Y.SadoughiM. (2023). How does teacher support contribute to learners’ grit? The role of learning enjoyment. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 17, 593–606.
45.
HejaziS.Y.SadoughiM.PengJ.E. (2023). The structural relationship between teacher support and willingness to communicate: The mediation of L2 anxiety and the moderation of growth language mindset. Journal of Psycholinguistic Research, 52, 2955–2978.
46.
HodgeB.WrightB.BennettP. (2018). The role of grit in determining engagement and academic outcomes for university students. Research in Higher Education, 59, 448–460.
47.
JennettH.K.HarrisS.L.MesibovG.B. (2003). Commitment to philosophy, teacher efficacy, and burnout among teachers of children with autism. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 33, 583–593.
48.
JiangJ.VaurasM.VoletS.WangY. (2016). Teachers’ emotions and emotion regulation strategies: Self-and students’ perceptions. Teaching and Teacher Education, 54, 22–31.
49.
JoãoI.M.SilvaJ.M. (2020). Developing an entrepreneurial mindset among engineering students: Encouraging entrepreneurship into engineering education. IEEE Revista Iberoamericana de Tecnologias del Aprendizaje, 15, 138–147.
50.
JohnsonS.CooperC.CartwrightS., et al. (2005). The experience of work-related stress across occupations. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 20, 178–187.
51.
KhajavyG.H.GhonsoolyB.Hosseini FatemiA. (2017). Testing a burnout model based on affective-motivational factors among EFL teachers. Current Psychology, 36, 339–349.
52.
KhajavyG.H.MacIntyreP.D.HaririJ. (2021). A closer look at grit and language mindset as predictors of foreign language achievement. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 1–24. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0272263120000480
53.
KimM.Y.BigmanY.TamirM. (2015). Emotion regulation. In WrightJ.D. (Ed.), International encyclopedia of the social & behavioral sciences (2nd ed., pp. 452–456). Elsevier.
54.
KleinbaumD.G.KupperL.L.NizamA.RosenbergE.S. (2013). Applied regression analysis and other multivariable methods. Cengage Learning.
55.
KokkinosC.M. (2007). Job stressors, personality and burnout in primary school teachers. British journal of educational psychology, 77(1), 229–243.
56.
KostoulasA.LämmererA. (2020). Resilience in language teaching: Adaptive and maladaptive outcomes in pre-service teachers. In GkonouC.DewaeleJ.-M.KingJ. (Eds.), The emotional rollercoaster of language teaching (pp. 89–110). Multilingual Matters.
57.
KristinssonK.GudjonssonS.KristjansdottirB. (2023). Tough times require tough people: The benefits of grit for reducing employee burnout. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20, 6024.
58.
KunnanA.J. (1998). An introduction to structural equation modelling for language assessment research. Language Testing, 15, 295–332.
LeeR.T. (2015). Psychology of wellbeing and burnout in the workplace. In WrightJ.D. (Ed.), International encyclopedia of the social and behavioral sciences (pp. 534–536). Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-097086-8.25041-1
61.
LeungD.Y.LeeW.W. (2006). Predicting intention to quit among Chinese teachers: Differential predictability of the components of burnout. Anxiety, Stress, and Coping, 19, 129–141.
62.
LiL.LvL. (2022). The impact of Chinese EFL teachers’ emotion regulation and resilience on their success. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 898114.
63.
LittleR.J.RubinD.B. (2019). Statistical analysis with missing data. John Wiley & Sons.
64.
LiuL.FathiJ.AllahveysiS.P.KamranK. (2023). A model of teachers’ growth mindset, teaching enjoyment, work engagement, and teacher grit among EFL teachers. Frontiers in Psychology, 14, 1137357.
65.
LouN.M.NoelsK.A. (2019). Promoting growth in foreign and second language education: A research agenda for mindsets in language learning and teaching. System, 86, 102126.
66.
MadiganD.J.KimL.E. (2021). Does teacher burnout affect students? A systematic review of its association with academic achievement and student-reported outcomes. International Journal of Educational Research, 105, 101714.
67.
MadiganD.J.KimL.E.GlandorfH.L.KavanaghO. (2023). Teacher burnout and physical health: A systematic review. International Journal of Educational Research, 119, 102173.
68.
MahmoodiM.H.HosseiniyarS.SamoudiN. (2022). EFL teachers’ classroom management orientation, self-efficacy, burnout, and students’ L2 achievement. Profile Issues in Teachers Professional Development, 24, 29–44.
69.
Mahmoodi-ShahrebabakiM. (2017). The effect of perfectionism on burnout among English language teachers: The mediating role of anxiety. Teachers and Teaching, 23, 91–105.
70.
MaslachC. (2015). Psychology of burnout. In WrightJ.D. (Ed.), International encyclopedia of the social and behavioral sciences (pp. 929–932). Elsevier. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-097086-8.26009-1
71.
MaslachC.JacksonS.E. (1981). The measurement of experienced burnout. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 2, 99–113.
MercerS.RyanS. (2010). A mindset for EFL: Learners’ beliefs about the role of natural talent. ELT Journal, 64, 436–444.
74.
MeyersL.S.GamstG.GuarinoA.J. (2016). Applied multivariate research: Design and interpretation. Sage.
75.
MizumotoA. (2023). Calculating the relative importance of multiple regression predictor variables using dominance analysis and random forests. Language Learning, 73(1), 161–196. https://doi.org/10.1111/lang.12518
76.
MorrisS.KingJ. (2023). University language teachers’ contextually dependent uses of instrumental emotion regulation. System, 116, 103080.
77.
NalipayM.J.N.KingR.B.MordenoI.G.ChaiC.S.JongM.S.Y. (2021). Teachers with a growth mindset are motivated and engaged: The relationships among mindsets, motivation, and engagement in teaching. Social Psychology of Education, 24, 1663–1684.
78.
NalipayM.J.N.KingR.B.MordenoI.G.WangH. (2022). Are good teachers born or made? Teachers who hold a growth mindset about their teaching ability have better wellbeing. Educational Psychology, 42, 23–41.
79.
NayerniaA.BabayanZ. (2019). EFL teacher burnout and self-assessed language proficiency: Exploring possible relationships. Language Testing in Asia, 9, 1–16.
80.
NazariM.Alizadeh OghyanousP. (2021). Exploring the role of experience in L2 teachers’ turnover intentions/occupational stress and psychological well-being/grit: A mixed methods study. Cogent Education, 8, 1892943.
81.
Norouz KermanshahiP.PishghadamR. (2022). Teachers’ burnout and their feedback-ability. Iranian Journal of Language Teaching Research, 10, 95–114.
82.
PeetersM.A.RutteC.G. (2005). Time management behavior as a moderator for the job demand-control interaction. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 10, 64–75.
83.
Piechurska-KucielE. (2011). Foreign language teacher burnout: A research proposal. In PawlakM. (Ed.), Extending the boundaries of research on second language learning and teaching (pp. 211–223). Springer.
84.
PyhältöK.PietarinenJ.Salmela-AroK. (2011). Teacher-working-environment fit as a framework for burnout experienced by Finnish teachers. Teaching and Teacher Education, 27, 1101–1110.
85.
RiaziA.M. (2016). The Routledge encyclopedia of research methods in applied linguistics. Routledge.
86.
Robertson-KraftC.DuckworthA.L. (2014). True grit: Trait-level perseverance and passion for long-term goals predicts effectiveness and retention among novice teachers. Teachers College Record, 116. 1–27.
87.
SadoughiM.HejaziS.Y. (2023). Teacher support, growth language mindset, and academic engagement: The mediating role of L2 grit. Studies in Educational Evaluation, 77, 101251.
88.
SadoughiM.HejaziS.Y.LouN.M. (2023). How do growth mindsets contribute to academic engagement in L2 classes? The mediating and moderating roles of the L2 motivational self system. Social Psychology of Education, 26, 241–261.
89.
SchmidtF.T.FleckensteinJ.RetelsdorfJ.Eskreis-WinklerL.MöllerJ. (2017). Measuring grit: A German validation and a domain-specific approach to grit. European Journal of Psychological Assessment, 35, 436–447.
90.
SchmidtJ.A.ShumowL. (2020). Testing a mindset intervention as a resilience factor among Latino/a students in science. Journal of Latinos and Education, 19, 76–92.
91.
SchonfeldI.S.BianchiR. (2016). Burnout and depression: Two entities or one?. Journal of clinical psychology, 72(1), 22–37. https://doi.org/10.1002/jclp.22229
92.
SkaalvikE.M.SkaalvikS. (2010). Teacher self-efficacy and teacher burnout: A study of relations. Teaching and Teacher Education, 26, 1059–1069.
93.
SkaalvikE.M.SkaalvikS. (2020). Teacher burnout: Relations between dimensions of burnout, perceived school context, job satisfaction and motivation for teaching. A longitudinal study. Teachers and Teaching, 26(7–8), 602–616. https://doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2021.1913404
94.
SoleimanzadehS.KhajavyG.H.BarabadiE. (2023). Foreign language teacher grit: Scale development and examining the relations with emotions and burnout using relative weight analysis. Applied Linguistics Review. Advance online publication. http://doi.org/10.1515/applirev-2022-0076
95.
SongM. (2022). Chinese English as Foreign language teachers’ self-efficacy and motivation as predictors of burnout. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 899687.
96.
SudinaE.VernonT.FosterH., et al. (2021). Development and initial validation of the L2-teacher grit scale. TESOL Quarterly, 55, 156–184.
97.
TabachnickB.G.FidellL.S. (2013). Using multivariate statistics (6th ed.). Pearson.
98.
TangX.WangM.T.GuoJ.Salmela-AroK. (2019). Building grit: The longitudinal pathways between mindset, commitment, grit, and academic outcomes. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 48, 850–863.
99.
TeimouriY.PlonskyL.TabandehF. (2022). L2 grit: Passion and perseverance for second language learning. Language Teaching Research, 26, 893–918.
100.
TengF. (2017). Emotional development and construction of teacher identity: Narrative interactions about the pre-service teachers’ practicum experiences. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 42, 117–134.
101.
TonidandelS.LeBretonJ.M. (2015). RWA web: A free, comprehensive, web-based, and user-friendly tool for relative weight analyses. Journal of Business and Psychology, 30, 207–216. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10869-014-9351-z
102.
TroyA.S.WilhelmF.H.ShallcrossA.J.MaussI.B. (2010). Seeing the silver lining: Cognitive reappraisal ability moderates the relationship between stress and depressive symptoms. Emotion, 10, 783–795.
103.
TsangK.K.JiangL. (2018). Sociological understandings of teachers’ emotions in second language classrooms in the context of education/curricular reforms: Directions for future research. In: Martínez AgudoJ. (Ed.), Emotions in second language teaching: Theory, research and teacher education (pp. 73–89). Springer.
104.
TsangK.K.LiG.WangL.WangG.WuH. (2022). The relationship between teaching experiences and teacher burnout in China: The mediating role of emotional labor. Beijing International Review of Education, 4, 135–151.
105.
TurnerP. (2020). Critical values for the Durbin–Watson test in large samples. Applied Economics Letters, 27, 1495–1499.
106.
ValeoA.FaezF. (2014). Career development and professional attrition of novice ESL teachers of adults. TESL Canada Journal, 31, 1–19.
107.
WangH.BurićI.ChangM.L.GrossJ.J. (2023). Teachers’ emotion regulation and related environmental, personal, instructional, and well-being factors: A meta-analysis. Social Psychology of Education, 26, 1651–1696.
108.
WebbT.L.MilesE.SheeranP. (2012). Dealing with feeling: A meta-analysis of the effectiveness of strategies derived from the process model of emotion regulation. Psychological Bulletin, 138, 775–808.
109.
XiyunS.FathiJ.ShirbagiN.MohammaddokhtF. (2022). A structural model of teacher self-efficacy, emotion regulation, and psychological wellbeing among English teachers. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 904151.
110.
YangD. (2022). Unpacking the role of Chinese EFL teacher aggression and burnout in their professional success: A teachers’ psychology perspective. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 1001252.
111.
ZarrinabadiN.JamalvandiB.RezazadehM. (2023). Investigating fixed and growth teaching mindsets and self-efficacy as predictors of language teachers’ burnout and professional identity. Language Teaching Research. Advance online publication. http://doi.org/10.1177/13621688231151787
112.
ZengG.ChenX.CheungH.Y.PengK. (2019). Teachers’ growth mindset and work engagement in the Chinese educational context: Well-being and perseverance of effort as mediators. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 839.
113.
ZhaoX.WangD. (2023). Grit in second language acquisition: A systematic review from 2017 to 2022. Frontiers in Psychology, 14, 1238788.
