Life Satisfaction and Empathy in Iranian EFL Teachers: A correlational study
الموضوعات :
Roya Hassanpour Souderjani
1
,
Laya Heidari Darani
2
,
Nafiseh Hosseinpour
3
1 - Department of English, Falavarjan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan, Iran
2 - Department of English, Falavarjan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan, Iran
3 - Department of English, Falavarjan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan, Iran
الکلمات المفتاحية: effective teaching, life satisfaction, EFL teachers, empathy,
ملخص المقالة :
This study intended to explore Iranian EFL teachers’ life satisfaction as well as their empathy levels. Furthermore, the relationship between Iranian EFL teacher’s life satisfaction and their empathy was investigated. To achieve these objectives, a group of 245 male and female Iranian EFL teachers with the age range of 20 to 55 years old participated. Data were collected through Life Satisfaction and Empathy Questionnaires. Results revealed that EFL teachers were satisfied with their life and were empathic teachers. Moreover, a significant relationship was found between these two variables. The main conclusion is that life satisfaction can have positive impacts on certain aspects of life; hence, it is recommended that proper conditions be provided for the EFL teachers. Additionally, having empathy with students may create happiness in both students and the teacher. Such happiness can presumably make the student bear a positive perspective towards language learning, thereby making them more motivated to learn English.
Andreoni, J., & Miller, J. (2002). Giving according to GARP: An experimental test of the consistency of preferences for altruism. Econometrica, 70, 737-753. https://www.jstor.org/stable/2692289
Arnold, J., & Murphey, T. (Eds.). (2013). Meaningful action: Earl Stevick's influence on language teaching. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Atteberry, A., Loeb, S., & Wyckoff, J. (2013). Do first impressions matter? Improvement in early career teacher effectiveness. National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper No. 19096. Washington, DC: National Bureau of Economic Research.
Bagheri, H. (1994). A profile for teaching and teaching English in pre-university schools of Sistan and Baluchestan: Problems and solutions [Unpublished master’s thesis]. Shiraz University.
Baron-Cohen, S., & Wheelwright, S. (2004). The empathy quotient: An investigation of adults with Asperger Syndrome or high functioning autism, and normal sex differences. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 34, 163-175. https://doi.org/10.1023/B:JADD.0000022607.19833.00
Berger, P. L. & Luckmann, T. (1996). The social construction of reality: A treatise in the sociology of knowledge. Hamondsworth, Middlesex: Penguin Education.
Bjekić, D. (1999) Profesionalni razvoj nastavnika [Teachers professional development]. Uzica: Uciteljski fakultet. https://scholar.google.com/scholar?cluster=167911247148472 10614&hl=en&oi=scholarr
Bjekić, D. (2000). Uspes nost u nastavi i empatija nastavnika [Success in teaching and teacher empathy]. Psihologija, 3(4), 499-520. http://scindeks-clanci.ceon.rs/data/pdf/0048-5705/2000/0048-57050003499B.pdf?ref=Guzels.TV
Brown, H. D. (2000). Principles of language learning and teaching (4th Ed.). New York: Longman.
Buckley, F. (1993). Empathic climate and learning outcomes: A study of teaching empathy in relation to mathematics learning outcomes [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. Dublin City University. http://doras.dcu.ie/18372/
Cozolino, L. (2013). The social neuroscience of education: Optimizing attachment and learning in the classroom. New York: Norton.
Dağlı, A., & Baysal, N. (2017). Investigating teachers’ life satisfaction. Universal Journal of Educational Research, 5(7), 1250-1256. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1147811.pdf
Demirel, H. (2014). An investigation of the relationship between job and life satisfaction among teachers. Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences, 116, 4925-4931. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.01.1051
Deveci Şirin, H., & Şirin, E. F. (2015). The relationshıp between life satisfactıon levels and work alienatıon in physical education teachers. Asian Journal of Instruction, 3(2), 1-14. http://paper.researchbib.com/view/paper/70645
Diener, E., & Biswas-Diener, R. (2002). Will money increase subjective well-being? A literature review and guide to needed research. Social Indicators Research, 57, 119–69.
Diener, E., Oishi, S., & Lucas, R. E. (2003). Personality, culture, and subjective well-being: Emotional and cognitive evaluations of life. Annual Review of Psychology, 54, 403-425. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.54.101601.145056
Diener, E., Oishi, S., & Lucas, R. E. (2009). Subjective well-being: The science of happiness and life satisfaction. In C. R. Snyder & S. J. Lopez (Eds.), Handbook of positive psychology (pp. 187-194). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Diener, E., Emmons, R., Larsen, R. J., & Griffin, Sh. (1985). The satisfaction with life scale. Journal of Personality Assessment, 49(1), 71-75. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327752jpa4901_13.
Dörnyei, Z., and Murphey, T. (2003). Group dynamics in the language classroom. Cambridge University Press.
Folkman, S. (2008). The case for positive emotions in the stress process. Anxiety Stress Coping, 21, 3-14.
Frisby, B. N., & Martin, M. M. (2010). Instructor–student and student–student rapport in the classroom. Communication Education, 59(2), 146-164.
Gergen, K. J. (2009). Relational being: Beyond self and community. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Gergen K. J., & Gergen M. (2012). Playing with purpose: Adventures in performative social science. Walnut Creek, CA: Left Coast Press.
Gibbs, C. (2002). Effective teaching: exercising self-efficacy and thought control of action. Paper presented at the Annual Conference of the British Educational Research Association, University of Exeter, England, September.
Gilman, R., & Huebner, E. S. (2006). Characteristics of adolescents who report very high life satisfaction. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 35, 311-319. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-006-9036-7
Gkonou, C.., & Mercer, S. (2017). Understanding emotional and social intelligence among English language teachers. London: British Council.
Gkonou, C. & Mercer, S. (2018). The relational beliefs and practices of highly socio-emotionally competent language teachers. In S. Mercer & A. Kostoulas (Eds.), Language teacher psychology (pp. 158-177). Bristol: Multilingual Matters.
Gordon, M. (2009). Roots of empathy: Changing the world child by child. New York: The Experiment.
Greenier, V., Derakhshan, A., & Fathi, J. (2021). Emotion regulation and psychological well-being in teacher work engagement: A case of British and Iranian English language teachers. System, 97, 1-18.
Gurney, P. (2007). Five factors for effective teaching. Journal of Teachers’ Work, 4(2), 89-98.
Harmer, J. (2007). The practice of English language teaching (4th Ed.). London: Pearson Longman.
Headey, B. (2014). Bottom-up versus top-down theories of life satisfaction. In A. C. Michalos (Ed.), Encyclopedia of quality of life and well-being research. Dordrecht: Springer. https://www.springer.com/gp/book/9789400707528
Heydari, H. (2012). The Investigation and Comparison of the Relationship between Life Quality, Hope, and Happiness with Life Satisfaction of the Wives of War-wounded and Ordinary Individuals (MA Thesis). University of Ferdowsi of Mashhad.
Hicks, A. M., & Diamond, L. M. (2008). How was your day? Couples’ affect when telling and hearing daily events. Personal Relationships, 15, 205-228. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-6811.2008.00194.x
Hiver, P. (2017). Tracing the signature dynamics of language teacher immunity: A retrodictive qualitative modeling study. Modern Language Journal, 101(4), 669-690.
Holmes, E. (2005). Teacher well-being: Looking after yourself and your career in the classroom. London: Taylor & Francis.
Howe, D. (2013). Empathy: What it is and why it matters. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Johnson, H., McNally, S., Rolfe, H., Ruiz-Valenzuela, J., Savage, R., Vousden, J., & Wood, C. (2019). Teaching assistants, computers, and classroom management. Labor Economics, 58, 21-36. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.labeco.2019.02.006
Killen, R. (2006) Effective teaching strategies: Lessons for research and practice (4th Ed.). Thomson, Social Science Press, UK.
Kim, L. E., Dar-Nimrod, I., & MacCann, C. (2018). Teacher personality and teacher effectiveness in secondary school: Personality predicts teacher support and student self-efficacy but not academic achievement. Journal of Educational Psychology, 110(3), 309-323. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000217
Kortte, K. B., Stevenson, J. E., Hosey, M. M., Castillo, R., & Wegener, S. T. (2012). Hope predicts positive functional role outcomes in acute rehabilitation populations. Rehabilitation Psychology, 57(3), 248-255.
Krapu, T. M., Meinke, L., Kramer, L., Friedman, R., & Voda, J. (2006). The life satisfaction survey (LSS): Development of the instrument. Proceedings of the fourth international coach federation coaching research symposium. Lexington, KY: International Coach Federation. http://www.krapu4.com/PDF/krapu_meinke_kramer_friedman_voda1.pdf
Krznaric, R. (2014). Empathy: A handbook for revolution. Croydon: Rider.
Lamb, M. (2017). The motivational dimension of language teaching. Language Teaching, 50(3), 301-346.
Loewe, N., Bagherzadeh, M., Araya-Castillo, L., Thieme, C., & Batista-Foguet, J. M. (2014). Life domain satisfactions as predictors of overall life satisfaction among workers: Evidence from Chile. Social Indicators Research, 118(1), 71-86. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-013-0408-6
Lyubomirsky, S., King, L., & Diener, E. (2005). The benefits of frequent positive affect: Does happiness lead to success? Psychological Bulletin, 131(6), 803-855.
McAlinden, M. L. (2012). Beyond understanding: Intercultural teacher empathy in the teaching of English as an additional language (PhD thesis). Graduate School of Research, The University of Western Australia.
McConnell, H. K., & Stull, L. (2017). Hope, life Satisfaction, and motivation. Modern Psychological Studies, 23(1), 1-18. https://scholar.utc.edu/mps/vol23/iss1/1
Mercer, S. (2016). Seeing the world through your eyes: Empathy in language learning and teaching. In P. D. MacIntyre, T. Gregersen, & S. Mercer (Eds.), Positive psychology in SLA (pp. 91-111). Bristol: Multilingual Matters.
Mercer, S., & Gkonou, C. (2017). Teaching with heart and soul. In T. Gregersen & P. D. MacIntyre (Eds.), Innovative practices in language teacher education (pp. 103-124). New York: Springer.
Meshcheryakov, B. G., & Zinchenko, V. P. (2004). Bolshoi psihologichesky slovar [Big psychological glossary]. Moscow: Olma Press.
Meyzari, A., R., & Dasht Bozorgi, Z. (2016). The relationship of altruistic behavior, empathetic sense, and social responsibility with happiness among university students. Research Press, 4(1), 51-56. http://jpcp.uswr.ac.ir/article-1-262-en.html
Morelli, S. A., Lieberman, M. D., & Zaki, J. (2015). The emerging study of positive empathy. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 9(2), 57-68. https://doi.org/10.1111/spc3.12157
Nemati, Sh., & Mehdipour Maralani, F. (2016). The relationship between life satisfaction and happiness: The mediating role of resiliency. International Journal of Psychological Studies, 8(3), 194-201. http://dx.doi.org/10.5539/ijps.v8n3p194
Nezlek, J. B., Feist, G. J., Wilson, F. C., & Plesko, R. M. (2001). Day-to-day variability in empathy as a function of daily events and mood. Journal of Research in Personality, 35, 401-423. https://doi.org/10.1006/jrpe.2001.2332
Nickerson, A. B., & Nagle, R. (2004). The influence of parent and peer attachments on life satisfaction in middle childhood and early adolescence. Social Indicators Research, 66, 35-60. https://doi.org/10.1023/B:SOCI.0000007496.42095.2c
Oxford, R. L. (2016). Toward a psychology of well-being for language learners: The empathic vision. In P. D. MacIntyre, T. Gregersen, & S. Mercer (Eds.), Positive psychology in SLA (pp. 10-87). Bristol: Multilingual Matters.
O’Sullivan, G. (2011). The relationship between hope, eustress, self-efficacy, and life satisfaction among undergraduates. Social Indicators Research, 101(1), 155-172.
Parchomiuk, M. (2018). Teacher empathy and attitudes towards individuals with disabilities. International Journal of Disability Development and Education, 66(4), 1-14.https://doi.org/10.1080/1034912X.2018.1460654
Pavot, W., & Diener, E. (2008). The satisfaction with life scale and the emerging construct of life satisfaction. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 3(2), 137-152. https://do i.org/10.1080/17439760701756946
Peterson, C. (2006). A primer in positive psychology. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Poskey, M. (2006). The importance of emotional intelligence in the workplace: Why it matters more than personality. Retrieved April 2019, from https://www.rosewoodcoaching.com/pdf/ImportanceOfEmotional Intelligence.pdf
Qiao, Y., & Lina, Ch. (2019). An investigation and research on life satisfaction of rural teachers in China. US-China Education Review A, 9(4), 192-201. https://doi.org/10.17265/2161-623X/2019.04.004
Rahimi, M. (1996). The study of English language instruction at the secondary schools of the Isfahan province [Unpublished master’s thesis]. Shiraz University.
Rask K, Astedt-Kurki, P., & Laippala, P. (2002). Adolescent subjective well-being and realized values. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 38, 254-263.
Rasoal, Ch., Jungert, T., Hau, S., & Andersson, G. (2011). Ethnocultural versus basic empathy: Same or different? Psychology, 2(9), 925-930. https://doi.org/ 10.4236/psych.2011.29139
Saadat, M. (1995). An investigation into the problems of teaching and learning English in the guidance and high schools of Fars province [Unpublished master’s thesis]. Shiraz University.
Şahin, Ş. (2008). Levels of burnout and life satisfaction of physical education teachers [Unpublished master’s thesis]. Mersin University.
Şahin, Ş. (2010). Teacher candidates’ attitudes towards teaching profession and life satisfaction levels. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2(2), 5196- 5201. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2010.03.845
Salovey, P., & Mayer, J. D. (1990). Emotional intelligence. Imagination, Cognition, and Personality, 9, 185-211. https://doi.org/10.2190/DUGG-P24E-52WK-6CDG
Saricam, H., Celik, I., & Coşkun, L. (2015). The relationship between emotional intelligence, hope and life satisfaction in preschool preserves teacher. The International Journal of Research in Teacher Education, 6(1), 1-9. http://ijrte.eab.org.tr/media/volume6/issue1/h_saricam.pdf
Schmitter, C., Zisselman, M., & Woldow, A. (2003). Life satisfaction in centenarians residing in long-term care. Annals of Long Term Care, 7(2), 437-442.
Siahpush, M., Spittal, M., & Singh, G. K. (2008). Happiness and life satisfaction prospectively predict self-rated health, physical health, and the presence of limiting, long-term health conditions. American Journal of Heal Promotion: AJHP, 23(1), 18-26. https://doi.org/10.4278/ajhp.061023137
Stebletsova, A. O., & Torubarova, I. I. (2017). Empathy development through ESP: A pilot study. Journal of Educational, Cultural and Psychological Studies, 16, 237-249. http://dx.doi.org/10.7358/ecps-2017-016-steb
Steel, P, Schmidt, J., & Shultz, J. (2008). Refining the relationship between personality and subjective well-being. Psychological Bulletin, 134, 138-161. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.134.1.138
Stojiljković, S., Djigić, G., & Zlatković, B. (2012). Empathy and Teaching Roles. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 69, 960-966. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2012.12.021
Stojiljković, S. Stojanović, A., & Dosković, Z. (2011). Moral reasoning and empathy in Serbian teachers. Education and Educational Psychology ICEEPSY, Istanbul, Turkey, Abstracts, p. 133-134.
Suldo, S. M., & Huebner, E. S. (2006). Is extremely high life satisfaction during adolescence advantageous? Social Indicators Research, 78, 179-203. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-005-8208-2
Suldo, S. M., Riley, K. N., & Shaffer, E. J. (2006). Academic correlates of children and adolescents’ life satisfaction. School Psychology International, 27, 567-582.
Sürücü, A. (2014). Evaluation of life satisfaction among guidance teachers with respect to certain variables. Proceedings of international academic conferences 0201638. International Institute of Social and Economic Sciences. https://ideas.repec.Org/p/sek/iacpro /0201638.html
Stronge, J. H., Tucker, P. D. & Hindman, J. L. (2004). Handbook for qualities of effective teachers. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, Alexandria, VA, USA.
Underhill, A. (2013). The inner workbench: Learning itself as a meaningful activity. In J. Arnold and T. Murphey (Eds.), Meaningful action: Earl Stevick’s influence on language teaching (pp. 202–218). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
UNICEF (2001). Primary education in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Belgrade: UNICEF Belgrade Office. https://www.unicef.org/evaldatabase/files/FRY_01-013.pdf
Valois, R. F., Zuling, K. J., Huebner, E. S., & Drane, J. W. (2004). Physical activity behaviors and perceived life satisfaction among public high school adolescents. Journal of school health, 74(2). http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1746-1561.2004.tb04201.x
Wieseke, J., Geijenmüller, A., & Kraus, F. (2012). On the role of empathy in customer-employee interactions. Journal of Service Research, 15(3), 316-331. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094670512439743
Yap, B., & Sim, C. (2011). Comparisons of various types of normality tests. Journal of Statistical Computation and Simulation, 81(12), 2141-2155. https://doi.org/10.1080/00949 655.2010.520163
Yılmaz, E., & Şahin, M. (2009). A study into life satisfaction levels of the teachers working at primary education in terms of some variables. E-Journal of New World Sciences Academy, 4(4), 1404-1414. https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/download/article-file/185894.
