Association between demographic factors and mental health outcomes among primary and secondary school teachers in Southeast of China: A cross-sectional study

Authors

Suhong Xiao, Department of Neurosurgery, Zhejiang Rongjun Hospital, Jiaxing City, 314000, People's Republic of China.
Chen Wang, Department of Nursing, School of Life and Health Sciences, Huzhou College, Huzhou, 313000, China.
Lili Zhang, Ninghua Second Experimental Primary School, Ninghua County, Sanming City, 365499, Fujian Province, China.
Xinyu Xiang, Department of Health, Human Function, and Rehabilitation Sciences, District of Columbia, The George Washington University, Washington, 20052, USA.
Ruth E. Cortright, Department of Health, Human Function, and Rehabilitation Sciences, District of Columbia, The George Washington University, Washington, 20052, USA.
Rishi S. Pednekar, Department of Health, Human Function, and Rehabilitation Sciences, District of Columbia, The George Washington University, Washington, 20052, USA.
Isabella Overby, Department of Health, Human Function, and Rehabilitation Sciences, District of Columbia, The George Washington University, Washington, 20052, USA.
Jaspal S. Mahal, Department of Health, Human Function, and Rehabilitation Sciences, District of Columbia, The George Washington University, Washington, 20052, USA.
Feifei Wang, Faculty of Nursing, College of Medicine, Jiaxing University, Jiaxing, 314001, People's Republic of China. feifei.wang@zjxu.edu.cn.

Document Type

Journal Article

Publication Date

12-2-2025

Journal

BMC psychology

Volume

14

Issue

1

DOI

10.1186/s40359-025-03769-8

Keywords

Anxiety; Education psychology; Mental health; Pressure; School teacher

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate the mental health status of primary and secondary school teachers. This study sought to comprehensively assess the psychological symptoms and identify potential problems. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study. A total of 2711 (response rate: 84.72%) primary and secondary school teachers were recruited through a random sampling method from urban and rural areas. The Symptom Checlist-90 (SCL-90) was used to assess their mental status. Data were analyzed using statistical methods such as descriptive statistics, t - tests, and one-way ANOVA to explore differences in mental health status among different demographic groups. RESULTS: In total, 7% of the participants showed mild to severe level of psychological distress. Specifically, symptoms of obsessive - compulsive (M ± SD: 1.72 ± 0.63) and depression (M ± SD: 1.56 ± 0.65) were relatively common. Statistically significant differences were found in mental health scores among teachers with different teaching experience, urbanicity, age and gender (p < .0001). Teachers with more than 10 years of teaching experience had higher psychological distress. Male teachers reported more severe symptoms compared with female teachers. Teachers teaching in urban areas faced with worse mental health than teachers teaching in rural areas. CONCLUSIONS: The study revealed that primary and secondary school teachers face certain mental health challenges. These findings emphasize the urgent need for educational institutions and relevant departments to pay attention to teachers' mental health, develop comprehensive mental health promotion programs, and provide appropriate support based on different teachers' characteristics to improve their mental well-being.

APA Citation

Xiao, Suhong; Wang, Chen; Zhang, Lili; Xiang, Xinyu; Cortright, Ruth E.; Pednekar, Rishi S.; Overby, Isabella; Mahal, Jaspal S.; and Wang, Feifei, "Association between demographic factors and mental health outcomes among primary and secondary school teachers in Southeast of China: A cross-sectional study" (2025). GW Authored Works. Paper 8454.
https://hsrc.himmelfarb.gwu.edu/gwhpubs/8454

Department

School of Medicine and Health Sciences Student Works