Teacher Victimization and Teacher Burnout: Multilevel Moderating Role of School Climate in a Large-scale Survey Study

Guided by the social-ecological model, the present study used hierarchical linear modeling to examine the multilevel associations between teacher victimization (TV), teacher burnout, and school climate. Participants were 1,711 teachers from 58 middle and high schools in mainland China. Using hierarchical linear modeling, the study found that upon controlling for teacher and school demographic factors, TV at the individual level had a significant and positive association with all three dimensions of teacher burnout (i.e., emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and reduced personal accomplishment). School climate at the teacher level, but not at the school level, was negatively associated with all three types of burnout. Moreover, school climate at the school level, but not at the teacher level, significantly moderated the association between TV and two dimensions of teacher burnout (i.e., depersonalization and reduced personal accomplishment). More specifically, a positive school-level climate buffered the positive association between TV and depersonalization but magnified the positive association between TV and reduced personal accomplishment. The current findings highlight the importance of reducing teacher victimization and promoting a positive school climate for preventing teacher burnout and teacher retention. It also indicates that teacher's adjustment in responding to teacher-targeted violence varies depending on school climate context and across the different dimensions of teacher burnout.