Date of Award
Summer 8-24-2024
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Organizational Unit
College of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences, Psychology
First Advisor
Sarah E. Watamura
Second Advisor
Jenalee Doom
Third Advisor
Kamilah Legette
Fourth Advisor
Rashida Banerjee
Fifth Advisor
Julia Dmitrieva
Copyright Statement / License for Reuse
All Rights Reserved.
Keywords
Burnout, Early childhood education (ECE), Workforce, Mental health, Social-emotional support
Abstract
In two studies, this dissertation evaluated relations among early childhood education (ECE) teachers’ well-being and embedded social-emotional services. Study 1 focused on occupational stress, burnout, and mental health, exploring the relations among stress and mental health, and the associations with social-emotional services. Study 1 also explored group differences in stress, burnout, mental health, and social-emotional services for teachers who identified as Latinx. Results showed that occupational stress and social emotional services had significant main effects on mental health (burnout, depression, anxiety), with associations varying across mental health measures. Occupational stress was associated with adverse mental health outcomes, while social-emotional support mitigated these effects, with group-based differences highlighting the significance of tailored support across different career stages and cultural contexts.
Study 2 delved into the potential associations of discrimination based on race with occupational stress, and mental health among Latinx Early Childhood Education (ECE) teachers. The study outlined the challenges ECE educators face, their critical role in child development, and the need to explore discrimination, occupational stress, and teacher mental health outcomes in tandem. The findings revealed that reported discrimination, measured by two scales, was significantly associated with anxiety and depersonalization but not directly associated with depression scores or emotional exhaustion scores. However, occupational stress and not discrimination was the primary predictor of mental health outcomes. Hierarchical Linear Modeling revealed complex relationships but did not support a moderation model. This study highlighted the connections among discrimination, occupational stress, and mental health outcomes among Latinx teachers. Nonparametric analyses probed for more nuanced relations, given small sample sizes. Implications and future directions are discussed in light of study limitations.
Copyright Date
8-2024
Publication Statement
Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.
Rights Holder
Andrew B. McGee
Provenance
Received from Author
File Format
application/pdf
Language
English (eng)
Extent
170 pgs
File Size
1.0 MB
Recommended Citation
McGee, Andrew B., "Naturalistic Evaluation of Embedded Social-Emotional Services in Early Childcare and Education Settings: Teacher Outcomes" (2024). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 2477.
https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd/2477
Included in
Developmental Psychology Commons, Early Childhood Education Commons, Educational Psychology Commons, Industrial and Organizational Psychology Commons, Mental and Social Health Commons
