Abstract
ABSTRACT This study sought to investigate which coping strategies are most frequently used by accounting faculty and how they can modulate the perceived stress. The higher education academic environment is filled with events that are stressful in nature; however, little effort, especially in the area of accounting, has been employed in seeking to understand and propose guidelines that can improve well-being and pleasure in the teaching profession. A coping strategy is a behavior that protects the individual from psychological damage related to problematic social experiences; it is through these behaviors that individuals manage their day-to-day experiences, thus helping to maintain their mental health. The discussion about the use of strategies for coping with stress lacks an approach in higher education institutions (HEIs), as it indicates that various strategies are being employed ineffectively and signals that three of the statistically significant strategies belong to the dimension of those focused on dysfunctional emotions. And, more seriously, of those three strategies, two (self-reproach and denial) have further contributed to increasing the perception of stress. The Teacher Stress Inventory (TSI), composed of 26 questions with a five-point Likert scale, and the Brief COPE (Coping Orientation to Problems Experienced Inventory), with 28 items and a four-point scale, were employed together with sociodemographic questions. An electronic questionnaire was sent to two thousand accounting faculty in Brazil. Altogether, 563 faculty members answered the questions. The analysis was conducted through association and multiple linear regression tests. It was verified that the average stress reported by the faculty members was 63% of the maximum TSI score, and the most prevalent strategies measured by the Brief COPE were planning, active coping, positive reinterpretation, use of instrumental support, self-reproach, and religion. Through linear regression estimation, it was concluded that two coping strategies (active coping and behavioral divestment) negatively moderated the faculty members’ stress, but two others (self-reproach and denial) raised their perception of stress. Moreover, it was discovered that the faculty members who were most vulnerable to stress use less adaptive coping strategies more intensely.
Highlights
Eduardo Mendes Nascimento, Marcia Carvalho Garcia & Edgard CornacchioneThe teaching profession is one of the most exposed to confrontational environments with high work demands, involving out-of-class tasks, meetings, and additional activities, relationship problems with students, time pressure, difficulty integrating with peers, and an accumulation of administrative activities and those involving another professional activity (Carr, 2014; David & Quintão, 2012; Reis et al, 2005)
A coping strategy is a behavior that protects individuals from psychological damage related to problematic social experiences or a behavior that mediates, in an important way, the impact that stressful events have over people (Coleman, 2019)
The research used a questionnaire sent by email to all the faculty members identified via the institutional websites of the Brazilian higher education institutions (HEIs) that offered an accounting program according to the Ministry of Education (MEC)
Summary
The teaching profession is one of the most exposed to confrontational environments with high work demands, involving out-of-class tasks, meetings, and additional activities, relationship problems with students (which can even include verbal and physical threats), time pressure, difficulty integrating with peers, and an accumulation of administrative activities and those involving another professional activity (Carr, 2014; David & Quintão, 2012; Reis et al, 2005) This stressful situation can lead to repercussions on the teachers’ physical and mental health and on their professional performance. Accounting Faculty mental health: coping strategies against stress and professional well-being, compromising the teaching-learning process Understanding this event and, in particular, determining successful mitigating behavior to avoid the disorders associated with its chronic form can be an important step in reducing these undesirable and counterproductive results, given that it is essential to know which interventions can be most effective in reducing teacher stress and improving its management in adverse and tension-generating situations (Embse et al, 2019). This observation is important, considering that working in a healthy work environment generates benefits both for the professionals and for the organizations, through reduced absenteeism; greater employee socialization and adaptation to the organization; increased motivation; reduced errors and costs associated with productivity; increased performance and creativity; innovation; more employee interaction with their colleagues, customers, and supervisors. (Machado et al, 2012, p. 195, own translation)
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