Work satisfaction or burnout and their impact on innovative work behavior of Greek teachers

Abstract

Innovation is a lever for growth and prosperity in business and society as a whole. Innovations lead to the industrial revolutions which are transforming our world. Innovation is the solution to many of the side effects of industrial revolutions. We can prepare the future world citizens to face the challenges of the new world only by education. The purpose of this study was to investigate work satisfaction, work engagement, burnout and innovative work behavior of Greek teachers. From the investigation the relationships between the above concepts emerged and the demographic elements associated with them were identified. The applied statistical survey of this study was conducted from December 2018 to January 2019 and 324 primary and secondary school teachers participated in it. Survey data were collected using an online questionnaire that included demographic questions, the Oldenburg Burnout Inventory (OLBI) and a Kleysen & Street innovative behavioral questionnaire adapted to Greek reality. The results of the survey showed a very low rate of burned-out and a high rate of work-engaged teachers. Because previous surveys have reported high rates of burnout for Greek teachers, we conclude that work engagement, as well as burnout, are time dependent on environmental factors related to the socio-economic changes of recent decades. Our research results also showed that establishing and supporting innovative work behavior by leadership and co-workers has the effect of demonstrating a high level of innovative work behavior by Greek educators. In addition, it was found a fluctuation of work engagement with age and an enhancement of innovative work behavior due to post-graduate studies. Moreover, it emerged that work engagement positively correlates with innovative work behavior, creating a virtuous circle, where one feeds the other.