Conditions of Beginning Teaching and Anxiety Perceived in Teacher Candidates

Abstract

Abstract Anxiety that negatively affects an individual's mental health and well-being is associated with a number of factors. One of these is concern about one's ability to find a job. In recent years, it has become increasingly difficult for teachers to obtain employment in Turkey, a fact which may account in part for the increased anxiety observed among teacher candidates. In this study, an attempt has been made to explore the connections between teacher candidates’ prospects of finding a job after graduation and their anxiety levels. The study was conducted with 286 teacher candidates (180 females and 106 males) who were in their senior year in college and were enrolled in various programs in the school of education. Data were collected with the help of a data collection sheet and a Beck Anxiety Inventory. Results indicated that concerns regarding finding a job did not have a significant effect on the anxiety scores. The results also illustrated that there were no significant differences between the anxiety scores of female and male teacher candidates, except for the somatic symptoms sub-inventory. The majority of the participants (79%) stated that they would be able to work in any position to which they might be appointed. It was determined that these findings were in line with the findings of some previous studies, but at variance with other related research. Recommendations have been made for researchers to conduct further studies on larger samples and taking into consideration a greater number of variables.