Examining the relationship between teacher career motivation and teacher job satisfaction: a multidimensional, multilevel approach

Abstract Teachers choose to pursue a career in teaching for various reasons which might influence the extent to which they feel satisfied with their job. The relationship between teacher career motivation and teacher job satisfaction has been tested in some previous studies, but the findings have been inconsistent. In this study, we revisited this relationship by drawing on the Teaching and Learning International Survey 2018 data and adopting multilevel structural equation modelling as the main data analytic approach. Results suggest that the link between teacher career motivation and job satisfaction was more salient at the school level than at the teacher level. Schools in which teacher career choice was driven more by personal benefits reported lower school-average satisfaction whereas those where teachers showed stronger desire to support student learning and make social contributions had higher school-average satisfaction. The findings offer important implications for teacher recruitment and retention strategies and school improvement efforts.