Mental load and psychosocial factors in education teachers in remote work. Case study

Abstract

In the educational field, face-to-face classes were moved to remote mode (online) due to COVID 19. Because of sudden restructuring of work tasks and investment of time in training to use ICT, teachers’ mental health was affected by adaptation to new systems and work overload. Mental load and psychosocial risks of 36 classroom teachers at Chilean school, voluntarily, were studied; to know the level to which they were subjected during 2020 and 2021. Results indicate: 6% of teachers with Burnout syndrome, 86% affected by emotional exhaustion; 83% presented a high level of mental load, the remaining percentage showed a medium level of mental load. Additionally, a strong positive correlation was found between psychosocial risk of compensation versus emotional exhaustion of Burnout and a strong inverse correlation of social support from company and leadership quality versus personal fulfillment.