Psychological resilience of teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted the socio-psychological well-being of the Russian population, causing contradictory changes in subjective well-being assessments. While the number of individuals considering themselves happy decreased, the overall social well-being index slightly increased, which can be explained by social comparison theory. The increased importance of health, family, and home stability was linked to the experience of social isolation. The pandemic led to reduced social contacts, less diverse leisure activities, and changes in daily routines, worsening subjective well-being. Subjective well-being during the pandemic depended on religiosity, marital status, perceived risk, economic and cognitive resources, type of employment, and gender differences, while dispositional optimism and hope helped mitigate the negative effects of the crisis. Particular attention was given to the impact on education: remote learning caused stress among teachers due to increased workload and the need to master new technologies. This study involved 153 employees of educational institutions in the Chelyabinsk Region. To Scale by E. Diener was employed, supplemented by the 's questionnaire that included questions on the pandemic's impact across various domains of life activity. A study of educational staff in the Chelyabinsk Region revealed an average level of life satisfaction, a high perception of pandemicrelated danger, and concern about the future of the educational process. The correlation between life satisfaction and the pandemic’s impact was weak, except for perceptions of danger and readiness to use remote learning technologies. These findings indicate the absence of a direct effect of the pandemic on the quality of educational activities, while stress was related to perceived control over the situation. Interventions to support emotional health and educational processes are necessary to improve life satisfaction and build resilience to future crises. The pandemic can be viewed as a socio-informational phenomenon that changed interaction patterns and emphasized the value of close relationships and health in society.