Examining the Relationships between Student Teacher Professional Identity Tensions and Motivation for Teaching: Mediating Role of Emotional Labor Strategies in China

Wenjie He, Guoxiu Tian, Qiong Li (), Laura B. Liu and Jingtian Zhou
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Wenjie He: College of Teacher Education, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China
Guoxiu Tian: College of Teacher Education, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China
Qiong Li: Center for Teacher Education Research, Key Research Institute of the Ministry of Education, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
Laura B. Liu: Division of Education, Indiana University—Purdue University Columbus, Columbus, IN 47203, USA
Jingtian Zhou: Faculty of Education, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong 999077, China

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 19, 1-16

Abstract: Learning to be a teacher through teaching practicum is viewed as a highly complex process in which multiple dilemmas and tensions emerge. These tensions may influence student teachers’ motivation for teaching. However, previous studies on teacher motivation have mainly focused on social status and welfare, seldom taking their emotion regulation into account. Sampling 752 student teachers from 15 teacher education institutes in China, this study examined the relationships between student teachers’ emotional labor strategies, professional identity tensions, and motivation for teaching during their practicum. The results indicated that emotional labor strategies were found to be important resources for student teachers to cope with the challenges brought by the tensions of professional identities in teaching practicum. In particular, deep acting and expression of naturally felt emotions enhanced student teachers’ intrinsic motivation to become a teacher. The results indicated that student teachers should perform emotional labor strategically, which may motivate them to be a teacher intrinsically.

Keywords: professional identity tensions; emotional labor strategies; motivation for teaching; student teachers (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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