Early childhood educators’ burnout: A systematic review of determinants and interventions

 

Background: Early childhood educators have a high risk of burnout, leading to a high turnover rate and harming young children’s educational outcomes. In this systematic review, we investigate the early childhood education service-related and individual causes of burnout of early childhood educators and the effectiveness of alternative interventions.

Aim: This systematic review aimed to investigate the early childhood education service-related and individual causes of burnout of early childhood educators and the effectiveness of alternative interventions.

Method: We searched Web of Science and ProQuest for articles on burnout and early childhood educators. Articles were included if they were peer-reviewed, written in English, and addressed burnout outcomes in early childhood educators.

Results: Of 40 studies in the final sample, 38 examined causes of burnout and two examined interventions. Burnout risk was more significant among teachers with low social capital, health status and wages. At the service-related level, weak or incoherent organisational structure, weak professional relationships, low professional status, a lack of career progression opportunities and professional training were all linked to a higher risk of educator burnout. The intervention studies reported that coaching, reflection, and counselling lowered the risk of burnout.

Conclusions: These findings build a research-based foundation for interventions to address individual and service-related causes of burnout and may be of interest to policymakers, teacher educators, researchers, and early childhood educators.

Implications for children and families: You will learn about educator wellbeing, the factors leading to burnout, and how their wellbeing can be supported.

Implications for practitioners: You will learn about educator wellbeing, the factors leading to burnout, and how their wellbeing can be supported.

Key words: professionals’ voices, workforce issues, wellbeing, education, health, policy, government, qualitative methods, review, burnout, systematic review

This presentation relates to the following United Nations Sustainable Development Goals:

• SDG 1: No Poverty
• SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being
• SDG 4: Quality Education
• SDG 5: Gender Equality
• SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
• SDG 10: Reduced Inequality