Early Educators' Depression and Experiences With Problem Behaviors: Does Working With Children With Disabilities Matter?

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Friday 8:00 am Four Seasons Ballroom 2-3
  In Roundtable Session: Inclusivity in Early Childhood Education: Challenges and Opportunities (Table 12)

Abstract

This study examines the association between teachers’ depression and experiences with children’s problem behaviors and whether this association varies for teachers working with children with disabilities, using data from the 2019 National Survey of Early Care and Education. The analysis focused on 3,079 center-based early educators. Both linear and ordinal logistic regression were used to analyze the data. The results showed that teachers with higher levels of depression were significantly more likely to report higher levels of problem behaviors in children. While working with children with disabilities increases the likelihood of reporting problem behaviors, it did not significantly alter the association between teacher depression and their experiences with problem behaviors. Implications of these findings are discussed.

Authors

• Emine Kilincci, University of Wisconsin - Madison

• Zhe Gigi An, University of Wisconsin - Madison