Influence of Teacher Burnout and Self-Efficacy on Teacher-Related Variance in Social-Emotional and Behavioral Screening Scores

Universal screening is useful in the early identification of behavioral and emotional concerns, but teacher-related variance can potentially influence screening scores and resulting decisions. The current study examined the extent to which burnout and self-efficacy as teacher-level variables accounted for variance in universal screening scores. The study participants included 1,314 K-6 students and 56 elementary school teachers. Teachers completed the Social, Academic, and Emotional Behavior Risk Screener (SAEBRS) for each student in their classroom, while also completing rating scales regarding their personal self-efficacy and levels of burnout. Hierarchical linear modeling was employed to estimate the extent of teacher-related variance and whether burnout and self-efficacy accounted for this variance. Unconditional models indicated 12-30% of variance in screening scores was between teachers. Conditional models indicated teacher self-efficacy and the depersonalization component of teacher burnout were statistically significant predictors of Emotional Behavior and Total Behavior scores on the SAEBRS. Results further suggested that when combined, burnout and self-efficacy variables accounted for 7-30% of between-teacher variance in screening scores. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.