The relationship between trait awe and teachers’ well-being for primary and secondary school teachers: the roles of professional identity and work engagement

Abstract Promoting teachers’ deep, sustainable well-being is vital for educational development, but the key emotional resources involved are still not well understood. Drawing on the broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions, this study is the first to model how trait awe influences occupational...

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Main Authors: Rong-Mao Lin, Wan-Qing Zheng, Yan-Ping Chen, Yu-Shan Ye, Tian-Xiang Hu, Shan-Shan Xie
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2025-08-01
Series:BMC Psychology
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-025-03185-y
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author Rong-Mao Lin
Wan-Qing Zheng
Yan-Ping Chen
Yu-Shan Ye
Tian-Xiang Hu
Shan-Shan Xie
author_facet Rong-Mao Lin
Wan-Qing Zheng
Yan-Ping Chen
Yu-Shan Ye
Tian-Xiang Hu
Shan-Shan Xie
author_sort Rong-Mao Lin
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Promoting teachers’ deep, sustainable well-being is vital for educational development, but the key emotional resources involved are still not well understood. Drawing on the broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions, this study is the first to model how trait awe influences occupational well-being among primary and secondary school teachers. We conducted a cross-sectional survey with 1,037 teachers in China and used structural equation modeling for data analysis. Results showed that trait awe enhanced teachers’ well-being both directly and indirectly. The indirect effect was mediated by professional identity and work engagement, both independently and sequentially. These findings provide the first empirical evidence that cultivating trait awe can be a powerful lever for supporting teachers’ well-being and driving educational progress.
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institution Kabale University
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publishDate 2025-08-01
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series BMC Psychology
spelling doaj-art-c3ddee65968441078cedd4a6e124c4f02025-08-20T03:46:17ZengBMCBMC Psychology2050-72832025-08-0113111110.1186/s40359-025-03185-yThe relationship between trait awe and teachers’ well-being for primary and secondary school teachers: the roles of professional identity and work engagementRong-Mao Lin0Wan-Qing Zheng1Yan-Ping Chen2Yu-Shan Ye3Tian-Xiang Hu4Shan-Shan Xie5School of Psychology, Fujian Normal UniversitySchool of Psychology, Fujian Normal UniversitySchool of Psychology, Fujian Normal UniversitySchool of Psychology, Fujian Normal UniversitySchool of Psychology, Fujian Normal UniversityDepartment of Humanities and Social Sciences, Minjiang Teachers College, Cangshan CampusAbstract Promoting teachers’ deep, sustainable well-being is vital for educational development, but the key emotional resources involved are still not well understood. Drawing on the broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions, this study is the first to model how trait awe influences occupational well-being among primary and secondary school teachers. We conducted a cross-sectional survey with 1,037 teachers in China and used structural equation modeling for data analysis. Results showed that trait awe enhanced teachers’ well-being both directly and indirectly. The indirect effect was mediated by professional identity and work engagement, both independently and sequentially. These findings provide the first empirical evidence that cultivating trait awe can be a powerful lever for supporting teachers’ well-being and driving educational progress.https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-025-03185-yTrait aweOccupational well-beingEmotional resourcesTeachers
spellingShingle Rong-Mao Lin
Wan-Qing Zheng
Yan-Ping Chen
Yu-Shan Ye
Tian-Xiang Hu
Shan-Shan Xie
The relationship between trait awe and teachers’ well-being for primary and secondary school teachers: the roles of professional identity and work engagement
BMC Psychology
Trait awe
Occupational well-being
Emotional resources
Teachers
title The relationship between trait awe and teachers’ well-being for primary and secondary school teachers: the roles of professional identity and work engagement
title_full The relationship between trait awe and teachers’ well-being for primary and secondary school teachers: the roles of professional identity and work engagement
title_fullStr The relationship between trait awe and teachers’ well-being for primary and secondary school teachers: the roles of professional identity and work engagement
title_full_unstemmed The relationship between trait awe and teachers’ well-being for primary and secondary school teachers: the roles of professional identity and work engagement
title_short The relationship between trait awe and teachers’ well-being for primary and secondary school teachers: the roles of professional identity and work engagement
title_sort relationship between trait awe and teachers well being for primary and secondary school teachers the roles of professional identity and work engagement
topic Trait awe
Occupational well-being
Emotional resources
Teachers
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-025-03185-y
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