Teaching-Induced Emotional Distress: A Phenomenological Study

The purpose of this hermeneutical phenomenological study was to interpret the lived experiences of teaching-created emotional distress from secondary teachers in the Midwest. The theory guiding this study is Lazarus and Folkman’s cognitive appraisal theory, as it suggests how the body appraises the harm emotional distress can cause and how coping can limit it. The central research question is how do teachers describe their experiences of teaching with emotional distress? The qualitative research study was done through a hermeneutic phenomenology design. The data was collected through interviews, physical artifacts, and a focus group that includes 13 secondary teachers who have experienced emotional distress from teaching. The setting was in a school district in the Midwest. The data collected was analyzed in a detailed approach described by van Manen and utilized Saldaña’s open and axial coding. The results of this study show three themes and subthemes. The first theme showed an unawareness of emotional distress. This theme included subthemes of participants not being able to define symptoms and the lack of helpful coping mechanisms. The second theme examined partitioning and how participants were metaphorically building walls to separate themselves from people who do not understand their struggles. The subthemes included using colleagues as support and the reluctance to go out. The last theme focused on undependable leadership. In this theme, the lack of professionalism, gotcha tactics, and tasks and responsibilities not aligning with beliefs were focused on. Each of these themes leads to implications that changes need to be made at all levels of education.