Emotional labor, job-related stress, and burnout in school leadership: insights from educational administrators

Abstract

Background Previous studies in various professional domains have indicated that emotional labor is a significant predictor of burnout. However, inconsistent findings suggest the need to explore mediating factors. This study investigates the relationship between emotional labor and burnout among school administrators in T & uuml;rkiye, focusing on the mediating role of job-related stress within the framework of the Job-Demand-Control-Support model. Methods The study employed a correlational cross-sectional survey design. Data were collected from 385 school administrators (principals and vice principals) in eight provinces in T & uuml;rkiye using validated scales for emotional labor, job-related stress, and burnout. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) and Bootstrap analysis were used to test the direct and indirect relationships among variables. Results SEM results indicated that emotional labor significantly predicted job-related stress (beta = 0.461, p <.001), and job-related stress strongly predicted burnout (beta = 0.851, p <. 001). While emotional labor initially appeared to influence burnout directly (beta = 0.475, p <.001), this effect became non-significant when job-related stress was introduced as a mediator, indicating full mediation. The model explained 80% of the variance in burnout. Conclusions The findings demonstrate that job-related stress fully mediates the relationship between emotional labor and burnout among school administrators. These results highlight the importance of organizational support mechanisms and the need to consider emotional demands in leadership roles to mitigate burnout.