Dimensions of teacher interest and their relations to occupational well-being and instructional practices

摘要

This study introduced a new questionnaire on subject, didactic, and educational teacher interest and analyzed their relations to occupational well-being (burnout, enjoyment, flow) and instructional practices in a sample of 281 teachers from elementary and both low- and high-achievement secondary schools. Results of confirmatory factor analysis verified the three-dimensional structure of the newly developed interest measure. Evidence for the construct validity of the interest measure was provided by structural equation analyses showing that teachers’ occupational well-being and instructional practices were predicted by their interests, even when controlling for self-efficacy beliefs. Specifically, both didactic and educational interest contributed to lower levels of burnout and predicted beneficial instructional practices (e.g., cognitive stimulation). In addition, subject and educational interest were the main predictors of enjoyment and flow in class. (DIPF/Orig.)