EMOTIONAL EXHAUSTION IN SPECIAL NEEDS TEACHING: DOES GOAL ORIENTATION MATTER?

Abstract

Special needs education is an emotional labor-intensive industry and burnout is a serious concern among newcomers. The present study investigates the mediation effects of emotional labor in the relationship between goal orientation and emotional exhaustion. Specifically, it was hypothesized that learning goal orientation predicts a low emotional exhaustion score indirectly through the use of deep acting strategies, while performance goal orientation predicts a high emotional exhaustion score indirectly through the use of surface acting strategies. Learning goal orientation was further hypothesized to exert a protective effect on the second mediation model, such that the mediation effect will be attenuated when learning goal orientation scores are high. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 123 novice special needs teachers in Singapore. The results showed the two mediation effects, but one of them was a positive indirect relationship between learning goal orientation and emotional exhaustion, rather than a negative one. Learning goal also did not act as a protective factor in the second mediation model as hypothesised. Additionally, deep acting was found to be positively correlated to personal accomplishment, while surface acting was positively correlated to depersonalisation. Post-hoc analysis also revealed that surface acting exerts a much stronger effect on emotional exhaustion than deep acting. Based on the findings, learning goals are seen as a better strategy as compared to performance goal for novice special needs teachers with respect to burnout consequences.