Stress factors and burnout in elementary school teachers

This study examines the relations between the three dimensions of the burnout (emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and decrease of personal accomplishment) and their associations with stress factors as perceived by the teacher. Using a sample of 787 elementary school teachers, we put to the test a theoretical model with path analysis. We achieve with a structural model that brings to light that personal accomplishment is determined directly by personal exhaustion and indirectly through depersonalization. The latter is influenced by negative relations with parents. Except this effect, the model also shows that the others sources of stress influence directly the emotional exhaustion. This study also confirms the three-dimensional structure of the French version of the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI). (C) 2007 Elsevier Masson SAS.