Elinor Schad

Background. The psychological health of young people in Sweden has declined since measurements began to be taken in 1985. The reasons for the increase in stress and decline in psychological well-being among adolescents have been debated during the past few years.

Objective. The aims of this study were to explore: 1) pupils’ experience of student health services, family, friends, recuperation and the learning environment; 2) whether there is a difference between introverted and extroverted pupils’ sense of well-being, perceived stress, views of the learning environment, and relationships with friends and family; and 3) the degree to which the different aspects of school life predict well-being and stress. 

Design. Data were collected by means of a web survey in which 1045 respondents participated. 

Results. The results showed that there are significant differences in perceptions of well-being and stress depending on gender and the type of study program pupils were enrolled in. The results also revealed significant differences between introverts’ and extraverts’ relationships with family and friends, experience of the learning environment, and reported well-being and stress. A series of hierarchical linear regressions revealed that there were several factors affecting pupils’ reported well-being and stress. The learning environment and relationships with family and friends were significant predictors for both outcome variables. Pupils’ ability to recuperate from their work was found to be the most impactful predictor for well-being and stress. 

Conclusion. Our results suggest that the way in which teachers interact with pupils is an important factor influencing pupils’ experience of well-being and stress. Furthermore, our results suggest that pupils would benefit from student health services being made more visible and pro-active in their interaction with students.

Background. In Sweden, teachers are subject to high turnover, unfavorable working conditions, and high incidence of stress-related disorders. The aim of the present study was to (a) assess teachers’ perceptions of work-related health and working conditions, (b) examine the relationship among several key characteristics in teachers’ work environment, and (c) examine the importance for well-being of job satisfaction, separation between work and spare time,and recovery from work.

Design. Primary and lower secondary school teachers in Sweden were invited to participate in a questionnaire study assessing five central aspects of health (subjective well-being, physical activity, self-rated health, sleep quality, and health complaints). Building on previous research, the effect of job satisfaction on well-being as well as on health complaints was tested using a mediation model with separation between work and spare time, and recovery from work, as mediators.

Results. Of the respondents, 40.2% scored below the cut-off recommended in the screening for depression, 43.8% qualifiedas leading a sedentary lifestyle, and 33.7% reported insufficient recovery from work. Sixty-one percentreported one or more sleep problems indicative of insomnia. Well-being correlated highly with self-rated health, health complaints, and separation between work and spare time. There is moderate support for the two models used to analyze the associations between job satisfaction and the outcome variables – well-being and health complaints – as both separation between work and spare time, and recovery from work, partially mediate the associations.

Conclusion. The results confirm recent research pointing to the teaching profession as a vulnerable occupational group. Especially disconcerting and relevant for teachers in Sweden are results indicative of problems with recovery from work and insufficient separation between work and spare time.

Today, Russia is a member of the European Federation of Psychological Associations (EFPA) and in the summer 2019 the Russian Psychological Society was the host to the 16th European Congress of Psychology (ECP) in Moscow, gathering psychologists from all over the world. In connection with the 2019 ECP, this special edition has been compiled by members of EFPA’s Standing Committee on Psychology in Education (SCPiE) and represents a collection of papers highlighting the range of work that educational psychologists undertake with schools and youth. This volume is also the next step for the EFPA Standing Committee for Psychologists in Education to strengthen and promote educational psychology in Europe, in order to reach our end goal: efficient and wellfunctioning institutions of learning.