The impact of job stress on burnout in Chinese teachers: The mediating roles of social support and psychological empowerment

Abstract This study aimed to explore the mediation mechanism of how sources of job stress impact teacher burnout. The participants were 502 Chinese teachers (Mage = 35.51, SDage = 9.56) in primary and secondary schools. The data were collected utilizing the Maslach Burnout Inventory, Occupational Stress Scale, Social Support Scale, and Psychological Empowerment Questionnaire. A structural equation model (SEM) was conducted to analyze whether social support and psychological empowerment mediate the relationship between job stress and teacher burnout. The results showed that the dimensions of job burnout were affected by different sources of job stress. Importantly, social support and psychological empowerment mediated the relationship between job stress and burnout. This study identified the important factors of job stress that affect teachers' burnout and provided a foundation for developing interventions for teachers experiencing burnout from the perspective of social support and psychological empowerment.