The dynamics of personal accountability within the context of teacher self-regulation profiles

A growing body of research highlights the crucial role of self-regulated learning (SRL) strategies in enhancing teaching effectiveness and promoting continuous professional growth. Teachers’ ability to plan, monitor, and evaluate their own learning processes has been linked to improved instructional quality and adaptability. While prior studies have explored the effects of accountability on teacher motivation and pedagogical practices, limited evidence exists regarding how teachers’ self-regulation patterns differ and how these variations relate to perceived accountability. This study aimed to identify distinct SRL profiles among teachers and examine their associations with internal and external accountability perceptions. A total of 339 primary and secondary school teachers in Türkiye participated in the study. Using latent profile analysis (LPA), teachers were classified based on their reported SRL strategies. Differences in accountability perceptions across the resulting profiles were examined through multivariate analyses. The LPA revealed three meaningful SRL profiles: Low Self-Regulators (Profile 1), High Self-Regulators (Profile 2), and Moderate Self-Regulators (Profile 3). Teachers in the High Self-Regulators profile reported significantly higher levels of both internal and external accountability than those in the other two groups, whereas the Low Self-Regulators profile was characterized by lower accountability across all measures. Moreover, internal accountability emerged as a stronger motivational factor than external mechanisms for teachers with well-developed SRL skills. These results indicate that SRL is a multidimensional construct closely linked to how teachers perceive and respond to accountability demands. The findings underscore the importance of fostering teachers’ self-regulatory capacities as part of professional development initiatives. Teacher education programs should adopt differentiated approaches that consider individual SRL profiles and accountability orientations to enhance reflective and autonomous teaching practices. Future research is encouraged to explore the longitudinal development of these profiles and evaluate the impact of accountability-driven interventions on sustained professional growth.