Abstract
Aim This article presents first results from a pilot project of nursery school teachers in Switzerland, investigating their stress in work situations. The aim of this study was to find out which factors at the workplace of teaching professionals result in stress situations and to what extent.
Subjects and Methods In this study, 66 questionnaires from 13 different day care centers in Zurich were descriptively analyzed. To estimate the risk and scope of burnout, the tool "Burnout Screening Scale" (BOSS I to III) was used.
Results The teaching professionals surveyed were only slightly affected by stress factors in their professional and personal lives and only a few developed strong physical, mental or emotional symptoms. On the other hand, the teaching professionals in the study exhibited a satisfactory level of available resources. In addition to staff shortage, the working environment, affected by poor communication patterns, has been identified as the main stress factor.
Hedderich, Ingeborg