The Correlation Between Systemic Factors, Citizenship Behaviors, Misbehaviors, and Work Stress in Female Arab Teachers in Israel

Abstract

The study investigates the correlation among systemic factors including educational system reforms and managerial leadership style, stress levels, and their effects on job performance, work-family balance, and workplace functionality of Arab mothers who are teachers in Israel. However, the study involved 546 Israeli-Arab mothers working as secondary education teachers, who completed questionnaires focusing on conflict expressions, systemic factors, and their effects on work performance indicators. The examination of the results - among others, suggests that the perception of work stress among participants was related to a high level of the two types of conflict as well as to the high prevalence of withdrawal behavior. The second result showed that actively managing was associated with a lower occurrence of withdrawal behavior at all three levels, while also being associated with a higher prevalence of citizenship behavior. On the other hand, workload related to work or family was not a predictor of a higher prevalence of withdrawal behaviors and a low prevalence of citizenship behavior. In an understudied field, the current research presents the multi-factorial complexity of the systemic factors in Arab schools in Israel and their impact on work functioning. The practical outcomes are both organizational and social and they concern both the managers and the family environment of the teachers. The study shows that the manager’s support is a crucial factor in mitigating the Work-family conflict. Thus, it is suggested to encourage school managers’ willingness to give teachers support and a more lenient work environment to help mitigate their work-related stress.