Social Vulnerability of Brazilian Metropolitan Schools and Teachers’ Absence from Work Due to Vocal and Psychological Symptoms: A Multilevel Analysis

Adriane Mesquita de Medeiros (), Mariana Fernandes Lobo, Marcel de Toledo Vieira, Lia Duarte, João Paulo Monteiro Carvalho, Ana Cláudia Teodoro, Rafael Moreira Claro, Nayara Ribeiro Gomes and Alberto Freitas
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Adriane Mesquita de Medeiros: Postgraduate Program in Speech-Language Sciences, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte 30130-100, Brazil
Mariana Fernandes Lobo: CINTESIS@RISE, MEDCIDS, Faculty of Medicine of the University of Porto, 4200-450 Porto, Portugal
Marcel de Toledo Vieira: Department of Statistics and Graduate Program in Economics, Federal University of Juiz de Fora, Juiz de Fora 36036-900, Brazil
Lia Duarte: Institute of Earth Sciences, FCUP Pole, Rua do Campo Alegre, 4169-007 Porto, Portugal
João Paulo Monteiro Carvalho: Department of Geosciences, Environment and Spatial Planning, Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto (FCUP), Rua do Campo Alegre, 4169-007 Porto, Portugal
Ana Cláudia Teodoro: Institute of Earth Sciences, FCUP Pole, Rua do Campo Alegre, 4169-007 Porto, Portugal
Rafael Moreira Claro: Postgraduate Program in Public Health, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte 30130-100, Brazil
Nayara Ribeiro Gomes: Postgraduate Program in Speech-Language Sciences, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte 30130-100, Brazil
Alberto Freitas: CINTESIS@RISE, MEDCIDS, Faculty of Medicine of the University of Porto, 4200-450 Porto, Portugal

IJERPH, 2023, vol. 20, issue 4, 1-15

Abstract: Teachers’ voices and psychological symptoms are the main reasons for absence from work. The objectives of this study were: (i) to spatially represent, through a webGIS, the standardized rates of teachers’ absences due to voice (outcome 1) and psychological symptoms (outcome 2) in each Brazilian Federative Unit (FU = 26 states plus Federal District) and (ii) to analyze the relationship between each national outcome rate and the Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) of the municipality where urban schools are located, adjusted for sex, age, and working conditions. This cross-sectional study comprised 4979 randomly sampled teachers working in basic education urban schools, of which 83.3% are women. The national absence rates were 17.25% for voice symptoms and 14.93% for psychological symptoms. The rates, SVI, and school locations in the 27 FUs are dynamically visualized in webGIS. The multilevel multivariate logistic regression model showed a positive association between voice outcome and high/very high SVI (OR = 1.05 [1.03; 1.07]), whereas psychological symptoms were negatively associated with high/very high SVI (OR = 0.86 [0.85 0.88]) and positively associated with intermediate SVI (OR = 1.15 [1.13; 1.16]), in contrast with low/very low SVI. Being a woman (voice: OR = 1.36 [1.35; 1.38]; psychological: 1.22 [1.21; 1.24]) and working in schools with various precarious conditions (17 variables) increased the odds of being absent due to voice and psychological symptoms. The results confirm the need for investments to improve working conditions in schools.

Keywords: voice disorders; mental health; social vulnerability index; absenteeism; teachers; multilevel analysis; GIS analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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