INFLUENCE OF BURNOUT ON EMOTIONAL LABOUR AMONG SECONDARY SCHOOL TEACHERS IN THE MAKURDI METROPOLIS

Abstract

Due to the enormous job demands of a teacher, there is bound to be emotionallabour associated with the work. If properly handled it would impact positively on the lives ofstudents and lead to better teaching and learning. This study examines the influence of burnouton emotional labour among Secondary school teachers in the Makurdi metropolis. The cross-sectional research design was employed for the study. Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI,1983) and Emotional Labour Scales were used. Participants were selected through simplerandom sampling technique. The participants were made up of 237 (48.0%) males and257(52.0%) females. The study has two main objectives, namely, to examine the influence ofburnout on emotional labour among secondary school teachers in Makurdi metropolis and toexplore gender differences in emotional labour among secondary school teachers in Makurdimetropolis. Multiple linear regression analysis and independent t-test were used to analysedata. Findings from the results revealed that overall burnout significantly and positivelyinfluenced emotional labour among secondary school teachers in Makurdi metropolis [F(3,490) =4652.728; P<.01; Finding also revealed that there were no significant genderdifferences in emotional labour among secondary school teachers in Makurdi metropolis t (df,492) =.336; P>.05. The study concluded that burnout is a determinant of emotional labour. Thehigher the level of burnout by teachers, the higher the level of emotional labour. Genderdifferences were not a predictor of emotional labour among teachers. The study recommended,amongst others, that the Benue State Government, through the Ministry of Education, shoulddesign policies and programmes such as training on coping strategies and an increase inmotivation that would add value to teachers’ welfare and productivity. More so, more teachersshould be hired to complement the efforts of the existing ones to reduce heavy workloads,burnout and emotional labour. Training on coping strategies should be carried out to giveteachers the resiliency training they needed to overcome psychological strain and emotionallabour at work. This would increase efficiency and productivity among teachers in the state.