A Quasi-Experimental Examination of Racial/Ethnic Teacher-Student Congruence and Occupational Stress

• In Event: Race, Ethnicity, Religion, and Language in the Classroom

Abstract

In this quasi-experimental study, we used data from the National Teacher Principal Survey (NTPS) to examine the extent that working in racially/ethnically congruent schools was associated with risk for stress and subsequent vocational concerns like job satisfaction and burnout-like fatigue. Results indicate White teachers, when placed in schools where the majority of students were of the same race/ethnicity, reported decreased stress vulnerability and appraised their workplace more positively than the incongruent condition. These results were not mirrored for Black and Hispanic teachers, whereby Teachers of Color frequently viewed congruent settings less favorable than incongruent settings. Findings have substantial implications for how educators and policy makers presume race/ethnicity intersectionalities contribute to how teachers perceive their workplace.

Authors

• Jendayi Bizzelle Dillard, The University of Texas at Austin

• Kristen C. Mosley, The University of Texas at Austin

• Paul G. Fitchett, University of North Carolina - Charlotte

• Richard G. Lambert, University of North Carolina - Charlotte

• Christopher J. Mccarthy, The University of Texas at Austin

• Emily Playfair, University of Texas at Austin