Teachers' well-being at work and quality of life: Any differences according to years of experience?

Purpose of the study. Teachers are at risk of burnout. Preliminary data has suggested that age might increase this risk. The objective of this study was to evaluate, among teachers, differences of work and general well-being according to years of experience, and to suggest recommendations. Methods. In the population-based postal survey "Qualite de vie des enseignants" ("Teachers' Quality of Life") (MGEN Foundation/Ministry of education), 2320 primary and secondary teachers were asked about their well-being at work (satisfaction with professional experience, teaching experience evolution over the past five years, three dimensions of the Maslach Burnout Inventory) and general well-being (quality of life, perceived health and four scores of the WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire). These well-being indicators were analyzed in multivariate regression models adjusted on sociodemographic and occupational factors, according to the categories of years of experience:. <= 5, 6-29, >= 30. Results. Compared to more experienced teachers, early-career teachers had less favorable work conditions and a lower environmental health score (-3 points 95%IC = [(-5.1) (-1.0)]; P = 0.005). Senior teachers were more likely than mid-career teachers to judge their work as becoming more and more difficult (OR = 2.6 [2.0-3.4]; P < 0.001). They also tended to show more emotional exhaustion and burnout symptomatology. They were less satisfied with their quality of life (OR = 0.7 [0.5-0.9]; P = 0.009) and their health (OR = 0.7 [0.5-0.9]; P. 0.002), especially from a physical and social relationship point of view (-5.4 points [(-7.1) (-3.8)]; P < 0.001 and -3.0 points [(-4.8) (-1.3)1; P = 0.001 respectively). Conclusion. This study adds further evidence towards the hypothesis of a decrease in teachers' well-being at the end of their career, and supports the interest of carrying out targeted support and preventive actions. Attention should also be paid to early-career teachers who may face particularly difficult work conditions, regardless of their inexperience. (C) 2017 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.