Athens Journal of Education - Volume 6 - Issue 2 - The Relationship between Teachers' Perceptions of Emotional Labor and Teacher Burnout and Teachers' Educational Level

Oct 15, 2026

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Research examines how teachers’ perceptions of emotional labor relate to teacher burnout and teachers’ educational levels. The study draws on 170 female Haredi teachers across Israel. Emotional labor is measured with the Emotional Labor of Teaching Scale (TELTS), while burnout is assessed using a Teacher Burnout Questionnaire and a study-specific demographic survey. Data are analyzed with SPSS using ANOVA and MANOVA. Results show that burnout level and education level differentially influence use of surface, deep, and natural acting techniques.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages18

Reading Time45 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Emotional Labor

Feeling Rules

Emotional Regulation

Athens Journal of Education-Volume 6, Issue 2 – Pages 127-144 The Relationship between Teachers' Perceptions of Emotional Labor and Teacher Burnout and Teachers' Educational Level By Racheli Zaretsky􀀍 & Yaacov J Katz† The purpose of this research was to examine the relationship between teachers’perceptions of emotional labor, teacher burnout and teachers ’ educational levels. The research sample consisted of 170 female Haredi (religiously ultra-orthodox and observant) teachers working in schools throughout Israel. The data were collected using the Emotional Labor of Teaching Scale (TELTS) and Teacher Burnout Questionnaire, anda demographic questionnaire formulated for the present study. The data collected in the study were processed using SPSS software. The two research hypotheses, namely a) teachers characterized by lower levels of burnout will use the natural acting technique associated with emotional labor whereas teachers typified by higher level of burnout will utilize the surface acting or deep acting emotional labor techniques; and b) teachers with higher levels of education will tend to use the natural acting technique associated with emotional labor in contrast to teachers with lower levels of education who will tend to utilize the surface acting or deep acting emotional labor techniques, were analyzed by ANOVA and MANOVA procedures. The main findings indicated that both teachers' burnout levels and teachers’ levels of education differentially affected the use of the specific emotional labor techniques (surface, deep or natural acting). The conclusion of this study is that various variables can influence teachers’ use of techniques associated with emotional labor. Changes in such variables, such as teachers’ level of burnout and level of education, may improve management of emotions in teaching and improve their well-being. Keywords: emotional labor, level of burnout, level of education. Introduction "Teaching Is Emotional Labor" (Larrivee, 2012, p. 37) . "Emotions are dynamic parts of ourselves, and whether they are positive or negative, all organizations, including schools, are full of them " (Hargreaves, 1998, p, 835). Thus, emotional labor is perceived as a central and major factor associated with the wellbeing of members of the workforce in general and particularly those in the teaching profession as is evident in the above quotations. This paper will address the relationship between emotional labor of teachers and their levels of burnout as well as with their levels of education. 􀀍 PhD Student, School of Education, Bar-Ilan University, Israel. † Professor Emeritus, School of Education, Bar-Ilan University, Israel. [https://doi.org/10.30958/aje.6-2-3](https://doi.org/10.30958/aje.6-2-3) doi=10.30958/aje.6-2-3 Vol. 6, No. 2 Zaretsky & Katz: The Relationship between Teachers' Perceptions… Emotional Labor Feeling Rules According to the Meriam-Webster dictionary (2017), emotion is: "A conscious mental reaction (as anger or fear) subjectively experienced as a strong feeling usually directed toward a specific object and typically accompanied by physiological and behavioral changes in the body " The expression of feelings has many diverse social functions: it is related to gathering of information, influences social interactions and shapes interpersonal relationships with others (Wong et al., 2013). This relationship, between emotion and the social context, creates feeling rules (Hochschild, 1983; Hochschild, 2012) which can be described as norms that relate to the way a culture perceives the suitability or appropriateness of ways to express emotions in specific social interactions, including the degree and intensity of which expressions are expressed (Ekman & Friesen, 1975; Matsumoto & Hwang, 2013) . Feeling rules differ from society to society and from culture to culture (Matsumoto & Hwang, 2013) . They change according to the specific context (Moran, Diefendorff, & Greguras, 2013) and in acc

FAQs

What is the study’s main purpose?

The research investigates the relationship between teachers’ perceptions of emotional labor, teacher burnout, and teachers’ educational levels.

How were emotional labor and burnout measured?

Emotional labor was measured using the Emotional Labor of Teaching Scale (TELTS) and teacher burnout was assessed with a Teacher Burnout Questionnaire, alongside a demographic questionnaire.

What do the findings indicate about burnout and education levels?

Teachers’ burnout levels and educational levels differently affect how teachers use specific emotional labor techniques such as surface, deep, or natural acting.

Oct 15, 2026

Upload by Mimi