This study was conducted to determine the factors that contribute to the job stress of school counselors, who play an important role in preserving the psychological health of the youth and in the activation of school counseling, and to analyze such fa...
This study was conducted to determine the factors that contribute to the job stress of school counselors, who play an important role in preserving the psychological health of the youth and in the activation of school counseling, and to analyze such factors with the end in view of reducing the job stress of school counselors, preventing a drop in their job satisfaction, helping them work efficiently, and providing basic data for the activation of school counseling.
Towards these ends, the concept of "job stress" and the job stress factors of school counselors were examined in the theoretical research. Job characteristics, roles, and interpersonal relationships were also selected as the possible job stress factors to be applied in the study, based on the results of previous related studies. Moreover, correlation and regression analyses were performed to determine the relationship between the job stress of school counselors and the factors that possibly contribute to it that had been selected.
The research findings by the analysis in this empirical study are summarized as follows: First, the anxiety or stress of school counselors was found to have a significant negative relationship with the feedback that they obtain regarding their job performance, their autonomy, and their realization of the significance of their job. This means that the anxiety or stress of school counselors is reduced when they recognize the importance of their job, when they take the initiative to carry out the tasks related to their job, and when appropriate feedback is given them in terms of their job performance. Second, among the seven subordinate variables of the roles of school counselors and their interpersonal relationships, which may contribute to the job stress of school counselors and which are assumed to have a positive correlation to the latter, six variables (excluding the parents of the students that school counselors cater to),were found to have a significant positive correlation with the job stress of school counselors. In particular, a school counselor's relationship with his/her manager was found to have the largest influence on the former's stress, and excessive role play showed the highest correlation with anxiety or stress. It was thought, based on these results, that as it has only been four years since school counselors were first hired in earnest, they have yet no clear job regulations and such regulations are still largely dictated by the head of the organization and by the atmosphere in the workplace.
As a result of the empirical analysis that was conducted, it was found that most of the possible job stressors of school counselors that were identified in this study indeed exert an influence on the level of their job stress, and that the job stress of school counselors reduces the quality of their counseling and education services, which coincide with the results of most of the previous related studies. Therefore, to minimize the job stress of school counselors and to enhance their work efficiency based on the results of this empirical study, the following measures are proposed. First, the role of school counselors needs to be clearly defined by providing them with sufficient information and guidance in relation to their job performance. Second, school counselors need to be provided with fair and objective work rating standards. Further, the factors that may cause conflicts between school counselors and their respective managers need to be reduced or eliminated in advance.
To conclude, the sufficient utilization of the results of this study, particularly the fact that the job characteristics of school counselors have a negative relationship with their job stress, will help reduce the job stress of school counselors and will enhance their work efficiency in some respects.