Perceptions of well-being among child care teachers

The perception of well-being among 235 randomly selected teachers was investigated in the context of ten different child care activities. The term well-being was defined as a linear composite of ratings on the Happiness and Relaxation scales. The results indicated that child related education, experience, and their interaction do not influence the overall well-being of teachers. However, the well-being changed significantly across child care activities and the pattern of changes was dependent on the amount of child care experience. Nurturing children and working with parents were found to be the most enjoyable and least stressful tasks. Not surprisingly, supervision of toileting was the least liked activity and controlling children's behavior was the most stressful task. The well-being of caregivers was considered a key to delivering quality child care.