This study investigated the program components preferred by teachers to design effective horticultural therapy programs to alleviate job stress of secondary school teachers. From April 8 to 28, 2025, an online survey was conducted on 307 middle and hi...
This study investigated the program components preferred by teachers to design effective horticultural therapy programs to alleviate job stress of secondary school teachers. From April 8 to 28, 2025, an online survey was conducted on 307 middle and high school teachers. The questionnaire consisted of 8 questions on demographic distribution, 6 questions on emotional labor and job stress levels and individual stress management strategies and willingness to participate in a horticultural therapy program, and 8 questions on horticultural therapy program components.
The level of emotional labor was set from 0 (low) to 10 (high), and the analysis results showed that the highest percentage of respondents answered 8, at 68 people (22.1%), followed by 7 (53 people, 17.3%), 10 (42 people, 13.7%), 5 (41 people, 13.4%), 9 (36 people, 11.7%), and 6 (33 people, 10.7%). The level of job stress was set from 0 (low) to 10 (high), and the most common response among respondents was 7 (65 people, 21.2%), followed by 8 (45 people, 14.7%), 5 (44 people, 14.3%), 10 (41 people, 13.4%), 6 (41 people, 13.4%), and 9 (25 people, 8.5%). Individual management measures for job stress alleviate were, exercise was the most common with 212 people (31.9%), followed by travel with 173 people (25.9%), reading with 113 people (17%), cleaning with 55 people (8.3%), other activities with 45 people (6.8%), and gardening with 40 people (6%).
As for the questions on the program components, most teachers responded with the total number of 10 sessions or less (261 people, 85%), one time per a week (228 people, 74.3%), the number of participants per session was 10 people or less (78.2%), the mediation time per session was 60 minutes or less (70.7%). The most preferred time to enforcement the program was lunch break (100 people, 32.6%), followed by after work (98 people, 31.8%), examination period (61 people, 19.9%), vacation period (38 people, 12.4%), and weekend or holiday period (10 people, 3.3%). Indoor (42%) was preferred as the place of activity, and group therapy (33.3%) was the most preferred type of activity. Lastly, the content of the activity was preferred as gardening activity (222 people, 34%), craft activity (221 people, 33.9%), and cooking activity (164 people, 25.3%).
These survey results are expected to be used as the basis for the design, institutional introduction, and follow-up research of horticultural therapy programs to alleviate job stress of secondary school teachers.