Correlationship Between Pre-School Teachers’ Grit and Work Engagement among Nursery Schools in Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria

The psychological characteristics of preschool teachers may shape their capacity to sustain effective involvement in the demanding work of educating and caring for young children. This study investigated preschool teachers’ grit as a correlate of work engagement in nursery schools in Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria. Specifically, it examined the relationship between teachers’ grit and work engagement and determined whether age and years of teaching experience moderated this relationship. A correlational research design was adopted. The population comprised 284 preschool teachers in registered public and private nursery schools in Benin City, from which 98 teachers were selected using a multistage sampling procedure. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire measuring grit, specifically perseverance of effort and consistency of interests, and work engagement, comprising vigour, dedication and absorption. The instrument was validated by experts and yielded a Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficient of 0.79. Data were analysed using Pearson Product-Moment Correlation and moderation analysis at the 0.05 level of significance. Findings revealed a positive and statistically significant relationship between preschool teachers’ grit and work engagement (r = 0.61, p = .001). However, age did not significantly moderate the relationship (β = 0.07, p = .455), and neither did years of teaching experience (β = 0.06, p = .504). The study concludes that grit is an important personal correlate of preschool teachers’ work engagement, with the relationship not significantly varying by age or teaching experience. It recommends integrating psychological resource development, particularly perseverance and sustained commitment, into teacher professional development programmes.