Social support and secondary school teachers : an exploratory study

This exploratory study examined the nature of social support among teachers and the effects of social support on job satisfaction, intention to leave their current position and morale.Seventy-five secondary school teachers occupying a range of teaching positions were interviewed from 20 schools in the Christchurch metropolitan area. Social support was found to relate to and to predict job satisfaction, positive morale and negative morale but not to predict teachers' leaving intentions.Wide variations in the characteristics, com­ position and teacher perceptions of their support networks were observed. Overall workplace sources of support, (col­ leagues, supervisor) appeared to be the most important sources of support. Despite this nonwork sources of support (spouse, friends) were important sources of emotional and socialising support. Most teachers stated they had moderate needs of support and were also satisfied with the support they received. In spite of this, just under one-half of the sample described recent situations in which they felt they had lacked social support.Teachers also outlined a number of factors which influenced the seeking and giving of support.Finally, teachers identified behaviours they perceived as supportive and unsupportive and made recommendations of how colleagues could be more supportive.The implications of these results are discussed with reference to intervention programs designed to enhance social support in secondary schools