Experiences with teachers in childhood and their association with wellbeing in adulthood

BMC Psychology

Research

Simon Forstmeier¹  Christian Dittmann² 

[1] Developmental Psychology and Clinical Psychology of the Lifespan, Department of Psychology, University of Siegen, Adolf-Reichwein-Str. 2a, 57068, Siegen, Germany;Developmental Science and Special Education, Department of Educational Sciences, Faculty II, University of Siegen, Siegen, Germany;

关键词: Experiences with teachers;    Well-being;    Self-esteem;    Teacher-student relationship;    Meaningful experiences;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s40359-022-01000-6

 received in 2022-07-13, accepted in 2022-11-24,  发布年份 2022

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundPrior research mainly focussed on the impact of the teacher-student relationship on teachers emotions and wellbeing. Current data shows a relationship between the quality of the teacher-student relationship and children's mental health. Unfortunately, it has not yet been investigated whether meaningful experiences with teachers also have an impact on students' well-being and whether an effect can still be found in adulthood. This work examines the impact of meaningful experiences with teachers during childhood and adolescence on the well-being of adults.MethodsThe data in this study was collected by using a questionnaire. The current well-being of the participants was assessed with measures of life satisfaction, resilience, anxiety, stress, depressiveness, and self-esteem. Also, participants were asked to briefly write about their most meaningful experiences with teachers and rate them regarding their valence. These experiences were categorized into seven categories using a summarizing content analysis. We then conducted a statistical analysis with the data obtained.ResultsThe results showed a highly significant correlation between the participants’ self-esteem and the valence ratings of their experiences. Furthermore, the experience category had a substantial effect on individual self-esteem. Overall, this study demonstrated that a relationship exists between the well-being of adults and their experiences with teachers during childhood and adolescence.ConclusionThe results of this study call for a reflective, fair, authentic, and empathetic approach to students. Accordingly, teachers should be intensively trained to establish a relationship with their students that is characterized by appreciation and empathy.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s) 2022

【 图 表 】

Fig. 4