The relationship of empathy with professional styles in the work of the Russian teachers

Abstract

Introduction and problem. Empathy is a professionally important quality of a teacher's personality, while the relationship of empathy with various professional styles of teachers is an insufficiently researched area of pedagogical knowledge. The aim of the study was to establish the relationship of empathy with professional styles in the work of Russian teachers. Materials and methods. The following techniques were used in the study. Professional styles of teachers were evaluated using the questionnaire "Teacher styles" (N. Aelterman), represented by the typology: control, chaos, structure, autonomy. The level of empathy was recorded using a technique specially developed for the diagnosis of empathy in teachers: the questionnaire "Teacher Empathy Scale" (Wang). 116 teachers took part in the online survey (5.2 % of them were men and 94.8 % were women, the average age of the respondents was M=45.04 years; SD=11.22 years). Results. A significant relationship was found between the gender factor and control support (exactingness). The age factor turned out to be negatively correlated with support for chaos (rejection) (r=-0.19, at ρ<0.05) and positively with support for autonomy (participation) (r=0.26, at ρ<0.05). The degree of religiosity turned out to be significantly interrelated with 2 pedagogical styles: negatively with maintaining control (dominance r=-0.21, at ρ<0.05 and demanding r=-0.19, at ρ<0.05) and positively with maintaining autonomy (participation r=0.18, at ρ<0.05). There are no correlations between teaching styles and the level of subjective income and other socio-demographic variables (for example, the level of education). Professional styles are associated with empathy through the denial of chaos (refusal) (ρ<0.05) and the denial of control (demanding) (ρ<0.01). With self-efficacy, professional styles of teachers are interrelated with explanation, elements of the teacher's independence and his skills in organizing distance educational activities. Conclusions. During the analysis of the data obtained, it was possible to find correlations between professional styles and the degree of empathy, as well as the level of self-efficacy of teachers and other important socio-demographic factors.