Social Sciences & Humanities Open 8 (2023) 100599

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Social Sciences & Humanities Open

journal homepage: www.sciencedirect.com/journal/social-sciences-and-humanities-open

Regular Article

The role of self-efficacy beliefs and inclusive education beliefs on

teacher burnout
Deanna C. Friesen a, *, Unnati Shory b, Chastine Lamoureux a
a
Faculty of Education, The University of Western Ontario, Canada
b
Department of Psychology, The University of Western Ontario, Canada

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Keywords: The present study investigated whether teachers’ beliefs about teaching & learning and their beliefs about their
Teacher burnout own teaching self-efficacy predicted occupational burnout. Sixty-two elementary teachers completed three
Self-efficacy questionnaires: the Teacher Efficacy for Inclusive Practice Questionnaire (Sharma et al., 2012), the Beliefs about
Teacher beliefs
Learning and Teaching Questionnaire-Revised (Glenn, 2018) and the Teacher Burnout Scale (Richmond et al.,
Inclusive education
2001). Results revealed that while self-efficacy was associated with lower burnout, greater teacher-controlled
beliefs, emphasizing grades and holding entity views (i.e., beliefs that learning ability is fixed) were associ­
ated with higher burnout scores. Additionally, teachers who had both higher self-efficacy and endorsed student-
centered approaches reported experiencing less burnout. This study is the first to identify teacher belief profiles
that are associated with level of burnout. Results are discussed with respect to how supporting the development
of inclusive beliefs and building self-efficacy may support teacher well-being.

1. The relationships of self-efficacy beliefs and inclusive
education beliefs with teacher burnout
Teacher burnout remains a significant concern in Education. Occu­
pational burnout refers to reduced job performance as a function of
emotional or physical fatigue or depletion (Huk et al., 2019; Maslach
et al., 2001). Teachers experience diminished capacity for effective in­
struction that can negatively impact their students’ learning (Jennings &
Greenberg, 2009). In addition to poorer job performance, burnout can
also lead to teacher attrition. Countries such as the United States, Can­
ada, Britain, and Australia all experience high levels of attrition among
new teachers (Clandinin et al., 2015). For example, in the Canadian
province of Alberta, approximately 40% of new teachers leave the
profession in the first five years (Clandinin et al., 2015). Such attrition
may lead to teacher shortages that put further stress on the education
system and its remaining teachers. Thus, it becomes critical to better
understand factors associated with burnout in different educational
contexts.
1.1. Inclusive education
One important context in which to consider teacher burnout is in the
inclusive classroom. In this model, students of all abilities are taught in
the same classroom and provided with opportunities to participate fully
(Hutchinson & Specht, 2019). A commitment to inclusion was declared
in the Salamanca statement by the United Nations Educational, Scien­
tific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 1994. The statement
indicated that all students regardless of any special needs must be pro­
vided with access to a regular education system in a classroom with
age-appropriate peers in their local school. In the Canadian context,
each provincial Ministry of Education has committed to an inclusive
education model (Hutchinson & Specht, 2019), wherein students who
are identified with educational needs are ideally provided with the
necessary supports within a general education classroom.
Teachers play a vital role in implementing successful inclusive
practices into their classrooms (Jordan et al., 2009). Estimated preva­
lence of students with high-incidence exceptionalities such as learning
disabilities and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder each range from
4 to 8 percent of the student population (Hutchinson & Specht, 2019).
Given these estimates, it is common for teachers to have multiple stu­
dents in their classrooms that have been identified with additional
educational needs and require an individualized education plan. In the
2015–2016 academic year, 17.3% of students in Ontario received a
special education program or additional services (Learning Disabilities

* Corresponding author. 1137 Western Road, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, N6G 1G7, Canada.
E-mail addresses: deanna.friesen@uwo.ca (D.C. Friesen), ushory@uwo.ca (U. Shory), clamour3@uwo.ca (C. Lamoureux).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssaho.2023.100599
Received 29 June 2022; Received in revised form 8 June 2023; Accepted 11 June 2023
Available online 14 June 2023
2590-2911/© 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-
nc-nd/4.0/).
D.C. Friesen et al.
Association of Ontario, 2018). Despite receiving some specialized ser­
vices, most students with identified needs spend at least half of their day
in an inclusive classroom (Bunch & Valeo, 2004). Thus, it is the teacher’s
responsibility to design an environment using inclusive practices such as
universal design for learning and differentiated instruction to meet the
needs of all their students (Ontario Ministry of Education, 2017).
Importantly, inclusive instructional practices are more likely to be
adopted by teachers whose beliefs align with this model and who also
have strong self-efficacy beliefs for inclusive practices (Jordan et al.,
2009; Sharma & Sokal, 2015, 2016).
A potential challenge with the inclusion model is that the associated
classroom demands may lead to greater teacher stress or burnout
(Friedman-Krauss et al., 2014; Jennett et al., 2003). Nonetheless, given
that there is variability in teachers’ levels of burnout (e.g., McCormick &
Barnett, 2010), it is not simply the existence of inclusive classrooms that
are associated with burnout. Instead, it is worth considering how teacher
characteristics are associated with burnout. To date no studies have
examined whether there is a set of teacher beliefs (i.e., a profile) that is
more likely to be associated with burnout level. The current study sur­
veyed Ontario elementary teachers on their burnout level, their beliefs
about teaching and learning and their sense of self-efficacy to better
understand predictors of burnout in an inclusive educational
environment.
1.2. Teacher burnout
Several theories have been advanced about the nature of burnout. An
early perspective by Freudenberger (1974) proposed that the principal
reason for burnout is unrealistic expectations of job accomplishments.
When an individual fails to meet their expectations, it can impact their
sense of identity and can lead to burnout. Thus, from this perspective,
workplace demands themselves contribute to burnout feelings; these
demands might be heightened with increased student needs. Maslach
et al. (2001) suggested that burnout involves three subcomponents:
emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and reduced personal
accomplishment. Emotional exhaustion is the cornerstone of burnout in
which teachers may feel emotionally drained resulting in possible anger,
anxiety, depression, or emotional breakdown. Reduced personal
accomplishment aligns with Freudenberger’s belief that burnout stems
from teachers feeling that they are not reaching their full professional
potential as their expectations are not being met (Friedman, 2000).
Teachers experiencing depersonalization likely feel disconnected from
their students. When individuals experience these components of
burnout, they are no longer able to perform their job to the best of their
ability (Maslach et al., 2001).
Indeed, several studies have reported the negative impact of teach­
ers’ lack of engagement in the classroom on both instructional quality
and on their students’ outcome (e.g., Arens & Morin, 2016; Jennings &
Greenberg, 2009; Moè et al., 2021). For example, Arens and Morin re­
ported that teachers’ emotional exhaustion was negatively associated
with their students’ achievement on standardized tests, students’ per­
ceptions of teacher support, and students’ level of school satisfaction.
Klusmann et al. (2022) identified instructional quality as a partial
mediator of the relationship between emotional exhaustion and poor
student outcomes, providing some support for the proposal that
emotional exhaustion can lead to poorer instructional quality and then
subsequently to poorer student achievement and engagement. In an
experimental study, Moè et al. (2021) demonstrated that teacher
enthusiasm level impacted student recall, indicating that when teacher
engagement is low or depressed, then students’ learning is negatively
impacted. This disconnection between teacher and student could be
especially damaging in an inclusive educational environment, wherein
students have diverse needs and require their teacher to be proactive to
meet their needs. Consequently, it is critical to expand our under­
standing of how teacher burnout is related to several inter-related fac­
tors, including self-efficacy and teacher beliefs.
2
Social Sciences & Humanities Open 8 (2023) 100599
1.3. Established factors associated with teacher burnout
Research, to date, has sought to investigate some factors that may be
associated with burnout. Primary among these factors is teachers’ be­
liefs about their own self-efficacy. In education, self-efficacy is typically
defined as a teacher’s belief regarding their effectiveness in the class­
room. According to Bandura (1993), a teacher’s perception of their ef­
ficacy impacts the learning environment that they create. Teachers with
high self-efficacy are action-oriented and attempt to address problems of
practice. In contrast, teachers with low self-efficacy tend to avoid diffi­
culties in favour of focusing on internal emotional disturbances
(Chwalisz et al., 1992). The latter may lead to burnout. Indeed, corre­
lations have been observed between self-efficacy beliefs, teaching per­
formance and pedagogical beliefs. Specifically, self-efficacy is positively
associated with observed teaching performance or instructional quality
(Holzberger et al., 2013; Klassen & Tze, 2014), enthusiasm towards
teaching (Allinder, 1994) and inclusive beliefs (Hofman & Kilimo, 2014;
Meijer & Foster, 1988; Soodak et al., 1998; Soodak & Podell, 1993).
High self-efficacy is also predictive of employing inclusive strategies in
the classroom (Jordan et al., 2009) and applying a universal design for
learning framework (Griful-Freixenet et al., 2021). That is, teachers who
believe in the effectiveness of inclusive education and use these practices
also report high levels of self-efficacy (Woodcock & Jones, 2020).
Not surprisingly then, several studies have demonstrated that self-
efficacy is negatively associated with burnout (e.g., Huk et al., 2019;
Savas et al., 2014; Schwarzer & Hallum, 2008; Weiβenfels et al., 2021),
such that individuals who feel more capable are less likely to experience
burnout. Brown (2012) conducted a systematic review of research spe­
cifically examining this relationship. All eleven reviewed studies re­
ported a significant negative relationship between burnout and
self-efficacy. Additionally, the most robust relationships were between
self-efficacy and the subcomponents of emotional exhaustion and
depersonalization. In their work, Schwarzer and Hallum (2008)
demonstrated that low self-efficacy was likely a causal variable for
burnout by using a cross-lagged panel design. Measures of both variables
were collected a year apart; results demonstrated that self-efficacy at
time 1 was a stronger predictor of burnout at time 2 than the reverse
relationship, suggesting that low self-efficacy causes higher burnout
rather than the reverse. Presumably, there is great value in supporting
teachers in both being and feeling effective in their work to mitigate
levels of burnout.
In addition to self-efficacy, teachers’ beliefs about their profession
are related to their degree of burnout (e.g, Huk et al., 2019; McCormick
& Barnett, 2010). Huk et al. examined how irrational beliefs about
teaching predicted burnout scores. High school teachers from the US
reported on their low frustration tolerance, authoritarian attitudes,
school organization attitudes and self-downing. Each construct was
positively associated with burnout, meaning that teachers who believed
a) teaching should be easy, b) students should be punished when they
misbehave, c) teachers should be involved in running the school and d)
that their value is diminished by making professional errors, had higher
burnout scores. Additionally, respondents who perceived greater stu­
dent disrespect and inattentiveness also experience greater burnout.
Consistent with this finding, work by McCormick and Barnett (2010)
reported that the perception of student misbehaviour was the most
salient attribution for why burnout occurs amongst teachers. The au­
thors proposed that an inability to successfully manage student behav­
iour results in feelings of failure that can lead to depersonalizing
students, mental exhaustion, and diminished personal accomplishment.
Taken together, these results do indicate that teachers’ beliefs are
associated with burnout. However, little is known about inclusive beliefs
and burnout.
1.4. Inclusive beliefs & burnout
Although several studies have provided evidence that more positive
D.C. Friesen et al.
attitudes towards inclusion were associated with high self-efficacy
(Meijer & Foster, 1988; Soodak et al., 1998; Soodak & Podell, 1993),
an understanding of the link between inclusive beliefs and burnout is
missing from the literature. That is, there remains a great deal of un­
certainty as to whether individuals who hold inclusive beliefs are more
or less prone to experiencing burnout. For example, counter to their
prediction, Talmor et al. (2005) found that teachers in Israel with more
positive attitudes towards inclusion experienced less self-fulfillment.
However, these teachers also reported having poor administrative sup­
port and receiving minimal information about their students’ needs.
Talmor et al. suggested that if teachers do not receive the necessary
resources to meet their own expectations with respect to inclusion, then
this situation could lead to greater burnout. Of interest is whether this
relationship holds for contexts that provide greater support for inclusive
education. If teachers’ beliefs align with their school board’s educa­
tional model, then it would be reasonable to assume they should expe­
rience less burnout as they are aligned with the expectations of their
jobs.
One dimension of teachers’ beliefs that may be associated with their
level of burnout is their philosophy about the teacher’s role in the
classroom. Specifically, an inclusive education philosophy emphasizes a
student-centered approach to learning whereby teaching is guided by
students’ current abilities rather than curriculum expectations (Ontario
Ministry of Education, 2013, 2017). If teachers have a student-centered
orientation, then they value having students’ strengths and needs guide
their instruction, they provide students with choice in their learning
tasks and they value process over product (Glenn, 2018). In contrast, a
teacher-controlled orientation favours having the teacher control the
flow of a lesson, has students complete the assignments as planned, and
has the teacher be the principal evaluator of student work (Glenn, 2018).
To date, no work has investigated whether these orientations are related
to degree of burnout. However, given that self-efficacy is positively
related to more inclusive beliefs (e.g., Hofman & Kilimo, 2014; Meijer &
Foster, 1988; Soodak et al., 1998; Soodak & Podell, 1993) and nega­
tively related to burnout (Huk et al., 2019; Savas et al., 2014; Schwarzer
& Hallum, 2008; Weiβenfels et al., 2021), it can be hypothesized that
greater burnout would be associated with fewer student-centered beliefs
and more teacher-controlled beliefs.
A second dimension of teachers’ beliefs that may be associated with
burnout relates to how teachers view students’ ability to learn. Jordan
et al. (2009) discussed two divergent views on students’ abilities. On one
side of the spectrum, individuals who hold entity views believe that the
general ability to learn is set at birth and remains steady through to
adulthood. These individuals may take a pathognomonic perspective
that assumes disability is an innate pathology that is likely to be unre­
sponsive to intervention. In contrast, teachers who hold incremental
views believe that ability is more malleable and can develop incre­
mentally if provided with effective instruction (Glenn, 2018). Unfortu­
nately, when entity views are adopted, teachers spend less time working
with students with exceptionalities (Jordan et al., 2010) and use their
exceptionality to justify not being responsible for their students’ success.
Teachers with incremental beliefs are more likely to take responsibility
for the learning of that student and credit learning difficulties to factors
that are within the teacher’s ability to address (Jordan et al., 2009). An
argument could be made that either view could be positively associated
with burnout. Individuals who hold incremental views may experience
burnout if their expectations for student growth are not met (e.g., Tal­
mor et al., 2005). Conversely, individuals who hold entity views may
struggle to teach in an inclusive education context and this mismatch
may be related to greater burnout.
1.5. The current study
The current study had two goals. The first goal was to investigate
whether inclusive beliefs were related to teacher-reported burnout
scores, and the second goal was to examine whether inclusive beliefs
3
Social Sciences & Humanities Open 8 (2023) 100599
accounted for unique variance in burnout scores not accounted for by
self-efficacy beliefs. Although past research has reported existing re­
lationships between teacher self-efficacy with both burnout and beliefs
about inclusive practice, no studies have simultaneously examined the
relationships among all three variables. Understanding these relation­
ships is important because teacher education programs and professional
development opportunities strive to instill educators with both high self-
efficacy for inclusive practices along with inclusive beliefs; ideally, these
variables are protective factors to underscore teacher well-being.
Teachers from Ontario completed questionnaires on their beliefs
about teaching and learning, their self-efficacy beliefs, and their
perceived burnout levels. Based on previous literature (e.g., Brown,
2012), it was predicted that self-efficacy scores would correlate nega­
tively with burnout scores. Given there is minimal research on the topic,
no hypotheses were generated about the direction of the relationship
between inclusive beliefs and burnout scores. However, given that
Canada’s provincial Ministries of Education have widely adopted an
inclusive education model, ideally, individuals who have beliefs that
align with this model experience less burnout.
2. Method
2.1. Participants
Sixty-two teachers from across Ontario (58 females, 4 males)
participated in this study. Their ages ranged from 24 to 63 years old (M
= 40.59 years, SD = 9.18) and they had between 2 and 37 years of
teaching experience (M = 14.87 years, SD = 9.05). At the time of the
study, 18 participants were teaching primary grades (kindergarten –
grade 3), 19 were teaching junior grades (grade 4 – grade 6), 9 were
teaching intermediate grades (grade 7 and 8), one was teaching high
school (grade 9–12), 8 were teaching across levels, 4 were teaching in
special education, and 5 teachers were on leave for the academic year (4
were parental leaves).
2.2. Measures
Demographics Survey. In the demographics survey, teachers were
asked about their age, gender, grades taught, years of experience and
teaching qualifications (primary, junior, intermediate, senior, special
educational classes). They were also asked about their current teaching
position (general educator, reading specialist, special education teacher,
administration, etc.) and their current educational setting (English,
French Immersion, or a French First Language school).
Beliefs about Learning and Teaching Questionnaire – Revised (Glenn,
2018). This questionnaire assesses teachers’ beliefs about teaching and
learning in an inclusive educational environment (BLTQ; Glenn, 2018).
The BLTQ consists of 20 questions that use a Likert scale ranging from
strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (6). The items are divided into
four separate constructs: Teacher-Controlled, Incremental-Entity beliefs,
Student-Centered and Attaining Standards. Teacher-controlled consists
of six items. Higher scores indicate the belief that teachers should be
primarily responsible for the instruction and assessment of students.
Incremental-Entity beliefs were assessed with four statements; a high
score on this construct indicates that a teacher has entity beliefs and
considers learning abilities as fixed and not responsive to teaching. In
contrast, low scores indicate incremental views, meaning that teachers
believe abilities are malleable and influenced by teaching. Previous
work has reverse-scored this construct (Glenn, 2018) to align it with
other measures; this procedure was not done here. Student-centered
beliefs were captured with six items wherein higher scores indicate
that teachers believe teaching should be designed with students as the
starting point to address their needs. Lastly, Attaining Standards con­
sisted of four items examining the importance that teachers place on
grades. Higher scores indicate that teachers believe grades are important
in a student’s achievement and understanding of the material.
D.C. Friesen et al. Social Sciences & Humanities Open 8 (2023) 100599

Cronbach’s Alpha was calculated for each construct and ranged from Burnout Scale. Overall, the current sample was neutral with respect to
0.70 to 0.75. This reliability coefficient can range from 0 to 1 and a score beliefs surrounding teacher-controlled learning and the importance of
above 0.70 is recommended (Nunnally & Bernstein, 1994). grades. In contrast, as a group, they preferred student-centered learning
Teacher Efficacy for Inclusive Practice (TEIP; Sharma et al., 2012). This and favoured incremental beliefs. Of note, all mean self-efficacy ratings
questionnaire measures teachers’ beliefs about their own self-efficacy to were closest to the “agree” response for all domains, suggesting the
teach in an inclusive classroom. The questionnaire assesses three do­ group had confidence in their abilities. The group’s mean on the burnout
mains of self-efficacy: Managing Behaviour, Collaboration, and Inclusive scale was at the high end of the “few burnout symptoms” category,
Instruction. Each domain has six items on a 6-point Likert scale with wherein approximately half the sample was in this category and the
responses ranging from strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (6). High other half in the “strong burnout feelings but not serious problems” or
scores indicate that teachers are confident in their ability in that domain. above. To reduce the number of variables in subsequent analyses, the
Cronbach’s alphas ranged from 0.73 to 0.82. three self-efficacy constructs were aggregated to form an overall self-
Teacher Burnout Scale (Richmond et al., 2001). This questionnaire efficacy score. This decision was justified by the strong correlations
examines self-reported levels of burnout in teachers. The scale consists between the self-efficacy subtypes (ranging between .53 and .63) and
of 20 statements (e.g., I am weary with all of my job responsibilities) in the single factor structure that emerged in a principal component factor
which participants are asked to answer on a 5-point Likert scale ranging analysis.
from strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (5). Items centered on Table 2 reports the correlations between self-efficacy score, the BLTQ
feelings of exhaustion and job avoidance. Richmond et al. created four scores as well as the burnout score. Significant moderate correlations
burnout categories based on total scores: few burnout feelings (20–36), were observed between burnout and each of the following: self-efficacy
strong burnout feelings but not serious problems (36–55), substantial (− .43), teacher-controlled beliefs (.32), incremental-entity beliefs (.42)
burnout feelings (56–70) and severe burnout (71–80). Cronbach’s alpha and attaining standards (.30). Specifically, higher teacher-controlled,
for the measure was 0.92. entity and attaining standards beliefs were all associated with greater
burnout. In contrast, higher self-efficacy for inclusive education was
associated with lower burnout. There were also relationships amongst
2.3. Procedure the BLTQ constructs such that individuals who endorsed teacher-
controlled beliefs also endorsed entity beliefs and attaining standards
Data was collected online in the Spring of 2021. To recruit widely beliefs but did not endorse student-centered beliefs. Likewise, in­
within Ontario, advertisements were posted over social media on dividuals who endorsed entity beliefs also endorsed attaining standards
Ontario teachers’ Facebook groups and through their professional or­ beliefs.
ganizations’ websites (e.g., Association of Educational Researchers of A backwards regression analysis was conducted to examine which
Ontario, the Ontario Teachers’ Federation). Interested teachers con­ variables accounted for unique variance in burnout scores. In the
tacted the researchers and were emailed a link directing them to the backwards method, all the variables are initially input into the model
online Qualtrics survey platform. Through Qualtrics, participants were and then variables with nonsignificant regression weights are eliminated
provided with a letter of information, the consent form, and a series of one at a time until only those that explain unique variance are left in the
questionnaires. Questionnaires were completed in the following order: model. Table 3 presents both the full model with all variables included
Demographics, Reading Disabilities Questionnaire, BLTQ, TEIP and the and the final model with only the significant variables included. In the
Teacher Burnout Scale. The results from the Reading Disabilities Ques­ final model, self-efficacy had a positive regression weight and entity
tionnaire are not reported here and are part of a separate project. beliefs had a negative regression weight, R = 0.54, F(2, 59) = 12.42, p <
Teachers were recruited based on their interest in participating in a .001. The model accounted for 30% of the variance in the burnout
study about reading disabilities but were told in the letter of information scores.
that they would also be asked to complete a series of questionnaires Nonetheless, given that Table 2 indicated that there were relation­
about their experience as teachers; thus, teachers were unaware that the ships among the beliefs about teaching and learning constructs, a second
study would also be assessing their burnout levels. Participants were approach was taken to understand predictors of burnout from teachers’
provided with a debriefing form at the end of the 45-min session. Par­ beliefs profiles. Thus, all predictor variables were placed in a principal
ticipants chose either a $20 Gift card or a donation to a learning dis­ component factor analysis using a varimax rotation. The KMO measure
abilities association as their compensation. The study was approved by of sampling adequacy value was 0.67 and deemed adequate. Commu­
the Non-Medical Research Ethics Board at the researchers’ affiliated nalities ranged from 0.60 to 0.74, suggesting that the extractions were
university. reasonable. Two factors were generated that accounted for 67% of the
variance. See Table 4 for the two-factor structure. Factor 1 consisted of
3. Results teacher-controlled, entity and attaining standards variables; it was
named the traditional/didactic approach. The second factor included
Table 1 reports the descriptive statistics for the BLTQ, TEIP and positive loadings for self-efficacy for inclusive practice and student-
centered beliefs as well as a negative loading for teacher-controlled
Table 1 beliefs; it was called inclusive beliefs & self-efficacy. These two factors
The means, standard deviations and ranges for teacher beliefs, self-efficacy and
burnout variables.
Table 2
Construct Mean SD Range Pearson correlations for burnout, self-efficacy and teacher beliefs scores.
Teacher Beliefs 1 2 3 4 5 6
Teacher-Controlled 3.10 0.75 1.2–4.7
Student-Centered 4.84 0.55 3.8–6.0 1. Burnout – − .43*** .32* − .15 .42*** .30*
Incremental – Entity 1.75 0.70 1.0–4.0 2. Self-Efficacy – – − .33** .40** − .23 − .12
Attaining Standards 2.64 0.83 1.0–4.3 3. Teacher – – – − .34** .46*** .32**
Self- Efficacy Controlled
Collaboration 4.77 0.60 3.0–6.0 4. Student-Centered – – – – − .12 − .15
Managing Behaviour 4.57 0.59 2.7–6.0 5. Incremental-Entity – – – – – .50**
Inclusive Instruction 4.94 0.52 3.5–6.0 6. Attaining – – – – – –
Overall Self-Efficacy 4.76 0.48 3.5–6.0 Standards
Burnout 35.13 10.50 20–62
*p < .05, **p < .01, ***p < .001.

4
D.C. Friesen et al. Social Sciences & Humanities Open 8 (2023) 100599

Table 3 attaining standards beliefs, whereas teacher-controlled beliefs were

Coefficient table of backward regression models predicting burnout. negatively associated with student-centered beliefs. Importantly, for the
Model Predictors b SE β t Sig. current study, most of these beliefs had significant relationships with
burnout. Greater entity beliefs about learning (wherein individuals
Full Constant 2.69 0.87 3.10 .003
Teacher Controlled 0.04 0.10 0.06 0.46 .648 think that ability is fixed and that students are unlikely to learn) were
Student Centered 0.06 0.12 0.06 0.47 .640 associated with greater burnout. Additionally, traditional approaches to
Incremental-Entity 0.20 0.10 0.27 1.90 .063 teaching (teacher-controlled & an emphasis on grades) were associated
Attaining Standards 0.07 0.08 0.11 0.85 .400 with greater burnout. Similarly, Huk et al. (2019) reported that
Self-Efficacy − 0.39 0.14 − 0.36 − 2.87 .006
Final Constant 3.13 0.64 4.92 .000
authoritarian attitudes in high school teachers were associated with
Self-Efficacy − 0.26 0.08 0.34 − 3.06 .003 greater burnout. Our findings are very promising because they suggest
Incremental-Entity 0.38 0.12 − 0.35 3.13 .003 that a movement away from traditional perspectives and towards in­
clusive perspectives (i.e., the incremental side of the incremental-entity
continuum) supports not only greater achievement for students with
Table 4 exceptionalities (e.g., Blackorby et al., 2005; Jordan et al., 2010), but
Factors analysis components for the predictor variables. also better mental health outcomes for teachers.
Construct Traditional/Didactic Inclusive Beliefs &
It is worth noting that these findings stand somewhat in contrast to
Approach Efficacy work that supposes that environments which include students with
diverse needs are more prone to higher levels of burnout (e.g., McCor­
Teacher-Controlled .59 ¡.50
Incremental – Entity .85 − .12 mick & Barnett, 2010; Talmor et al., 2005; Weiβenfels et al., 2021).
Attaining Standards .82 − .01 Indeed, Talmor et al. reported greater burnout for teachers with more
Student-Centered − .05 .83 inclusive beliefs and teachers in the McCormick and Barnett study
Self-Efficacy − .12 .80 attributed burnout primarily to student behavioural concerns. However,
Bolded values indicate that this variable loaded onto the factor. both research groups noted that these concerns were not an indictment
of inclusive education. Instead, each set of authors indicated that
were input in a regression analysis with burnout as the outcome mea­ teachers in these environments were not supported to be effective
sure. The regression model was significant, R = 0.49, F(2, 59) = 9.48, p teachers in an inclusive system. They noted that their findings should
< .001, and accounted for 24% of the variance in burnout scores. Both serve as a call to action to increase both resources (Talmor et al., 2005)
factors were significant predictors of burnout; Factor one was a positive and professional development (McCormick & Barnett, 2010) needed to
predictor wherein individuals high in traditional beliefs were associated support inclusive practices.
with greater burnout. In contrast, high scores in inclusive beliefs and As expected, self-efficacy was negatively correlated with burnout
self-efficacy were associated with lower burnout. See Table 5 for the and thus accounted for unique variance in burnout scores. This finding is
regression analysis. consistent with a robust literature that has reported that greater self-
efficacy is associated with lower burnout (e.g., Brouwers & Tomic,
4. Discussion 2000; Brown, 2012; Huk et al., 2019; Savas et al., 2014; Schwarzer &
Hallum, 2008; Weiβenfels et al., 2021). Despite the current study’s
The current study examined the relationships between teachers’ in­ smaller sample size, the correlation of − .43 aligns well with the corre­
clusive beliefs, their self-efficacy for inclusive practice, and occupational lation magnitudes reported in Huk et al. (r = -.40) and Savas et al. (r =
burnout. Of particular interest was whether teachers’ beliefs about -.48). From a theoretical perspective, presumably, teachers who feel
teaching and learning accounted for unique variance in burnout levels effective in their jobs experience personal accomplishment and are
that was not accounted for by their perceived self-efficacy. Indeed, en­ meeting their professional expectations, thereby limiting feelings of
tity views, teacher-controlled views and attaining standards through burnout (cf. Freudenberger, 1974; Maslach et al., 2001). Importantly,
grades were all positively associated with burnout. These constructs self-efficacy was also positively associated with endorsing
were all positively correlated with each other, and as a composite score, student-centered learning but negatively associated with
they also predicted greater burnout scores. This novel finding demon­ teacher-controlled beliefs. Such findings confirm the alignment between
strates that a more traditional/didactic teaching style was associated inclusive beliefs and effective inclusive practice (cf. Woodcock & Jones,
with greater burnout in inclusive settings. In contrast, a composite score 2020) and imply that supporting teachers to develop both inclusive
of self-efficacy beliefs and student-centered beliefs was associated with beliefs and practices likely support greater job satisfaction and less
lower burnout. Thus, teachers who feel effective in their practice and burnout.
have inclusive beliefs that align with the endorsed educational model
experienced fewer feelings of burnout. 4.1. Implications for educators
Unique to this study were findings that specific beliefs about teach­
ing and learning were associated with feelings of burnout. The corre­ The current study’s findings show promise for decreasing burnout as
lations found amongst the constructs from the beliefs about learning and a function of increasing self-efficacy and inclusive beliefs with the sup­
teaching questionnaire were consistent with results reported by Glenn port of educational resources and professional development. In the
(2018) in their validation of the measure. Specifically, there were current study, student-centered beliefs in isolation were not associated
moderate positive correlations amongst teacher-controlled, entity and with burnout. It was only when these beliefs were combined in a factor
with self-efficacy beliefs that burnout scores were predicted. Nonethe­
less, to better understand causal relationships, future research will need
Table 5 to examine longitudinally whether gains in self-efficacy for inclusive
Coefficient Ttble of regression model using factor scores to predict burnout. practice and gains in inclusive beliefs are associated with decreased
Model Predictors b SE β t Sig. burnout.
Constant 35.19 1.18 29.84 <.001 Increasing self-efficacy and inclusive beliefs are important for several
Traditional/Didactic 4.09 1.18 .392 3.46 <.001 reasons in addition to potentially mitigating teacher burnout. As pre­
Approach viously noted, beliefs about teachers’ own self-efficacy and the value of
Inclusive Beliefs & − 3.14 1.18 − .301 − 2.66 .010 inclusion align with utilizing effective inclusive practice (e.g., Wood­
Efficacy
cock & Jones, 2020). Consistent with Bandura’s (1993) theory on

5
D.C. Friesen et al.
self-efficacy, teachers are more likely to use inclusive techniques when
they believe in their ability to do so effectively. Additionally, holding
incremental beliefs may be critical to supporting how students see
themselves. Individuals who hold defeatist beliefs (like entity-based
views) may be less motivated and less successful. For example,
Rheinschmidt and Mendoza-Denton (2014) found that students with
entity beliefs about themselves believed they would achieve lower
grades and were correct in this assessment. Since teachers’ beliefs about
their students, likely, impact how these students see themselves, it is
important that teachers develop incremental views and share this
growth mindset with their students. It may be beneficial to understand
pre-service teachers’ teaching philosophy and then implement in­
terventions to shift their views towards more incremental perspectives.
Key then is for teachers to gain access to learning opportunities and
resources that enable them to experience success with inclusion. Ban­
dura (1993) notes that when individuals experience success using a
strategy, they are more likely to select that approach in the future.
Presumably, educators that use inclusive practice and experience suc­
cess, also feel more effective and greater job satisfaction. Indeed, Keller
et al. (2014) noted that teachers’ enjoyment of their lessons is associated
with less emotional labour, and thus enjoyment may be a buffer against
burnout. Factors that may limit teachers’ ability to effectively use in­
clusion include teachers’ lack of knowledge about student needs and
how to address them, limited systematic administration support for in­
clusion and limited classroom resources (Bas, 2022). Importantly,
providing teachers with the means to effectively implement inclusion
will likely result in great student success, greater teacher job satisfac­
tion, less teacher burnout, and less teacher attrition.
4.2. Limitations & future directions
Our findings should be interpreted in light of their limitations. First,
as a correlational study, caution should be taken before making strong
causal inferences. Thus, it would be important to investigate empirically
whether professional development that targets teachers’ self-efficacy
beliefs and inclusive beliefs results in belief changes and fewer feel­
ings of burnout. To our knowledge, very few studies have taken a lon­
gitudinal approach to examining the relationship between self-efficacy
and burnout. One study by Schwarzer and Hallum (2008) does suggest
that poor self-efficacy precedes feelings of burnout, but it did not employ
an intervention to examine whether providing programming to increase
self-efficacy would subsequently decrease feelings of burnout. Other
work has examined how a growth mindset intervention can decrease
entity beliefs and increase persistence in inclusive programming (G Celis
Rangel, 2017). This approach could be taken a step further to examine
the impact of similar interventions on feelings of burnout.
A second limitation was the composition of our relatively small
sample of self-selected Ontario teachers, which raises questions about
the generalizability of our findings. Convenience sampling was used as
participants volunteered based on recruitment advertisements posted
across Ontario. Nonetheless, the direction and magnitude of the re­
lationships were similar to those observed in other studies using similar
constructs (e.g., Glenn, 2018; Huk et al., 2019) and our significance
levels were robust, suggesting we should have confidence in our results.
Nonetheless, it remains an open question about whether other pop­
ulations would demonstrate the same relationship between burnout and
inclusive beliefs, since different communities have different inclusive
policies and resources. Given the similar approaches taken across Can­
ada with respect to inclusion (Hutchinson & Specht, 2019), we would
predict that these same relationships would hold across Canada. Addi­
tionally, we would predict that other education systems that prioritize
inclusion would also produce similar findings. Nonetheless, this study
represents the first of its kind and future studies should confirm these
relationships in other populations.
A third concern is that our sample did not represent the full range of
possible scores on our measures. Most participants were in favour of
6
Social Sciences & Humanities Open 8 (2023) 100599
incremental beliefs and were in the two lowest category ranges on the
burnout scale. It is encouraging that our sample of teachers held strong
incremental beliefs and we have reason to believe that this finding
accurately reflects the beliefs of the Canadian population from which it
was drawn. Specifically, the findings align nicely with scores reported
(M = 1.82) from a large-scale study (N = 1490) that included pre-service
elementary teachers from across Canada (Specht et al., 2016). The lower
level of burnout reported is also promising for the profession. However,
it may not reflect the general state of the Ontario teacher population,
particularly since this data was collected during the COVID-19 pandemic
and this health crisis may have further limited teachers’ willingness to
participate.
One general challenge with this line of research is that individuals
who are experiencing mental exhaustion are already unlikely to volun­
teer for more work by participating in any research. Yet despite the
truncated ranges on key variables, there can be high levels of confidence
in the robustness of the results; specifically, significant correlations
among the key variables were still observed and there was very good
replication of previously established relationships. We might expect
stronger correlations with more variability in the scores, but we would
not expect different relationships between variables. However, this
possibility remains an open question and it is unknown whether results
would be impacted by including participants who were experiencing
severe or clinical levels of burnout. Directly attempting to recruit
teachers who are experiencing high levels of burnout would serve to
answer this question.
Finally, our work could be expanded to explore the impact of rele­
vant variables that may impact the nature of our findings. For example,
within our own sample, we were unable to delve deeper to examine
potentially mediating variables such as elementary grade taught or
number of students with exceptionalities in the classroom. Additionally,
there is precedent to question whether these relationships would be
found with high school teachers. Since high school pedagogy can differ
considerably from elementary school approaches, the associations be­
tween engaging in traditional/didactic practices and burnout level may
not exist. Specifically, because high school teachers are subject spe­
cialists and courses are often streamed based on academic ability,
choosing to engage in teacher-controlled approaches may be sufficiently
effective for this context and consequently, may not be associated with
increased burnout. This is speculation and this question could be the
source of future research.
5. Conclusions
In conclusion, the present study provides a novel contribution by
examining the relationship between burnout and inclusive beliefs in
elementary teachers. It demonstrated that both beliefs about the role of
teachers and about how students learn (or do not learn) account for
unique variance in burnout scores that is not accounted for by teachers’
self-efficacy beliefs. Specifically, we identified a profile of teacher beliefs
that is associated with greater burnout. Teachers who had more teacher-
controlled beliefs, endorsed the importance of grades, and had entity
beliefs, (and consequently fewer incremental views), were more likely to
have higher burnout scores. Such results are very promising, since the
potential exists to have excellent alignment between inclusive educa­
tional policy, teachers’ inclusive beliefs, their self-efficacy for inclusive
practice and their feelings of well-being.
CRediT authorship contribution statement
Deanna Friesen: Conceptualization, Methodology, Formal analysis,
Resources, Writing – review & editing, Supervision, Funding acquisition.
Unnati Shory: Writing – original draft, Formal analysis. Chastine
Lamoureux: Conceptualization, Methodology, Investigation.
D.C. Friesen et al.
Declaration of competing interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial
interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence
the work reported in this paper.
Acknowledgement
We would like to acknowledge the funding from a Social Sciences
and Humanities Research Council Explore Grant awarded to DF.
References
Allinder, R. M. (1994). The relationship between efficacy and the instructional practices
of special education teachers and consultants. Teacher Education and Special
Education: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Council for Exceptional
Children, 17(2), 86–95. https://doi.org/10.1177/088840649401700203
Arens, A. K., & Morin, A. J. S. (2016). Relations between teachers’ emotional exhaustion
and students’ educational outcomes. Journal of Educational Psychology, 108(6),
800–813. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000105
Bandura, A. (1993). Perceived self-efficacy in cognitive development and functioning.
Educational Psychologist, 28(2), 117–148. https://doi.org/10.1207/
s15326985ep2802_3
Bas, G. (2022). Factors influencing teacher efficacy in inclusive settings. Australasian
Journal of Special and Inclusive Education, 46, 19–32. https://doi.org/10.1017/
jsi.2021.22
Blackorby, J., Wagner, M., Cameto, R., Davies, El, Levine, P., & Newman, L. (2005).
Engagement, academics, social adjustment, and independence. Palo Alto, CA: SRI.
Brouwers, A., & Tomic, W. (2000). A longitudinal study of teacher burnout and perceived
self- efficacy in classroom management. Teaching and Teacher Education, 16(2),
239–253. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0742-051X(99)00057-8
Brown, C. G. (2012). A systematic review of the relationship between self-efficacy and
burnout in teachers. Educational and Child Psychology, 29(4), 47–63.
Bunch, G., & Valeo, A. (2004). Student attitudes towards peers with disabilities in
inclusive and special education schools. Disability & Society, 1(1), 61–78. https://doi.
org/10.1080/0968759032000155640
Chwalisz, K., Altmaier, E. M., & Russell, D. W. (1992). Causal attributions, self-efficacy
cognitions, and coping with stress. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 11,
377–400. https://doi.org/10.1521/jscp.1992.11.4.377
Clandinin, D. J., Long, J., Schaefer, L., Downey, C. A., Steeves, P., Pinnegar, E., McKenzie
Robblee, S., & Wnuk, S. (2015). Early career teacher attrition: Intentions of teachers
beginning. Teaching Education, 26(1), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1080/
10476210.2014.996746
Freudenberger, H. J. (1974). Staff burnout. Journal of Social Issues, 30, 159–164.
Friedman, I. A. (2000). Burnout in teachers: Shattered dreams of impeccable professional
performance. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 56(5), 595–606.
Friedman-Krauss, A., Raver, C. C., Morris, P. A., & Jones, S. M. (2014). The role of
classroom-level child behavior problems in predicting preschool teacher stress and
classroom emotional climate. Early Education & Development, 25(4), 530–552.
https://doi.org/10.1080/10409289.2013.817030
G Celis Rangel, M. (2017). Investigating the impact of an incremental mindset intervention on
students’ beliefs and programming performance [doctoral dissertation, Carleton
university]. Carleton University Research Virtual Environment. https://doi.org/
10.22215/etd/2017-12191
Glenn, C. V. (2018). The measurement of teachers’ beliefs about ability: Development of
the beliefs about learning and teaching questionnaire. Exceptionality Education
International, 28(3), 51–66.
Griful-Freixenet, J., Struyven, K., & Vantieghem, W. (2021). Toward more inclusive
education: An empirical test of the universal design for learning conceptual model
among preservice teachers. Journal of Teacher Education, 72(3), 381–395. https://
doi.org/10.1177/0022487120965525
Hofman, R. H., & Kilimo, J. S. (2014). Teachers’ attitudes and self-efficacy towards
inclusion of pupils with disabilities in Tanzanian schools. Journal of Education and
Training, 1(2), 177–198. https://doi.org/10.5296/jet.v1i2.5760
Holzberger, D., Philipp, A., & Kunter, M. (2013). How teachers’ self-efficacy is related to
instructional quality: A longitudinal analysis. Journal of Educational Psychology, 105
(3), 774. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0032198
Huk, O., Terjesen, M. D., & Cherkasova, L. (2019). Predicting teacher burnout as a
function of school characteristics and irrational beliefs. Psychology in the Schools, 56
(5), 792–808. https://doi.org/10.1002/pits.22233
Hutchinson, N., & Specht, J. (2019). Inclusion of learners with exceptionalities in Canadian
schools: A practical handbook for teachers (6th ed.). Toronto, Canada: Pearson.
Jennett, H. K., Harris, S. L., & Mesibov, G. B. (2003). Commitment to philosophy, teacher
efficacy, and burnout among teachers of children with autism. Journal of Autism and
Developmental Disorders, 33(6), 583–593. https://doi.org/10.1023/B:
JADD.0000005996.19417.57
Social Sciences & Humanities Open 8 (2023) 100599
Jennings, P. A., & Greenberg, M. T. (2009). The prosocial classroom: Teacher social and
emotional competence in relation to student and classroom outcomes. Review of
Educational Research, 79(1), 491–525. https://doi.org/10.3102/0034654308325693
Jordan, A., Glenn, C., & McGhie-Richmond, D. (2010). The supporting effective teaching
(set) project: The relationship of inclusive teaching practices to teachers’ beliefs
about disability and ability, and about their roles as teachers. Teaching and Teacher
Education, 26(2), 259–266. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2009.03.005
Jordan, A., Schwartz, E., & McGhie-Richmond, D. (2009). Preparing teachers for
inclusive classrooms. Teaching and Teacher Education, 25(4), 535–542. https://doi.
org/10.1016/j.tate.2009.02.010
Klassen, R. M., & Tze, V. M. C. (2014). Teachers’ self-efficacy, personality, and teaching
effectiveness: A meta-analysis. Educational Research Review. https://doi.org/
10.1016/j.edurev.2014.06.001
Klusmann, U., Aldrup, K., Roloff, J., Lüdtke, O., & Hamre, B. K. (2022). Does
instructional quality mediate the link between teachers’ emotional exhaustion and
student outcomes? A large-scale study using teacher and student reports. Journal of
Educational Psychology, 114(6), 1442–1460. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000703
Learning Disabilities Association of Ontario. (2018). Learning disability statistics. IDAO.
Learning Disabilities Association of Ontario. https://www.ldao.ca/introduction-to-l
dsadhd/articles/about-lds/learning-disabilities-statistics/.
Maslach, C., Schaufeli, W. B., & Leiter, M. P. (2001). Job burnout. Annual Review of
Psychology, 52, 397–422. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.52.1.397
McCormick, J., & Barnett, K. (2010). Teachers’ attributions for stress and their
relationships with burnout. International Journal of Educational Management, 25(3),
278–293. https://doi.org/10.1108/09513541111120114
Meijer, C., & Foster, S. (1988). The effect of teacher self-efficacy on referral chance. The
Journal of Special Education, 22, 378–385.
Ontario Ministry of Education. (2017). Special education in Ontario: Kindergarten to grade
12. Policies and resources guide. Retrieved from https://files.ontario.ca/edu-learning-f
or-all-2013-en-2022-01-28.pdf.
Ontario Ministry of Education. (2013). Learning for all. A guide to effective assessment and
instruction for all students, kindergarten to grade 12. Retrieved from https://files.ont
ario.ca/edu-special-education-policy-resource-guide-en-2022-05-30.pdf.
Moè, A., Frenzel, A. C., Au, L., & Taxer, J. L. (2021). Displayed enthusiasm attracts
attention and improves recall. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 91(3),
911–927. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjep.12399
Nunnally, J. C., & Bernstein, I. H. (1994). Psychometric theory (3rd ed.). New York, NY:
McGraw-Hill.
Rheinschmidt, M. L., & Mendoza-Denton, R. (2014). Social class and academic
achievement in college: The interplay of rejection sensitivity and entity beliefs.
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 107(1), 101–121. https://doi.org/
10.1037/a0036553
Richmond, V. P., Wrench, J. S., & Gorham, J. (2001). Communication‚ affect‚ and learning
in the classroom. Acton‚ MA: Tapestry Press.
Savas, A. C., Bozgeyik, Y., & Eser, I. (2014). A study on the relationship between teacher
self-efficacy and burnout. European Journal of Educational Research, 3(4), 159–166.
https://doi.org/10.12973/eu-jer.3.4.159
Schwarzer, R., & Hallum, S. (2008). Perceived teacher self-efficacy as a predictor of job
stress and burnout: Mediation analyses. Applied Psychology: International Review, 57,
152–171. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1464-0597.2008.00359.x
Sharma, U., Loreman, T., & Forlin, C. (2012). Measuring teacher efficacy to implement
inclusive practices. Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs, 12, 12–21.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1471–3802.2011.01200.x
Sharma, U., & Sokal, L. (2015). The impact of a teacher education course on pre-service
teachers’ beliefs about inclusion: An international comparison.”. Journal of Research
in Special Educational Needs, 15(4), 276–284. https://doi.org/10.1111/1471-
3802.12043
Sharma, U., & Sokal, L. (2016). Can teachers’ self-reported efficacy, concerns, and
attitudes toward inclusion scores predict their actual inclusive classroom practices?”.
Australasian Journal of Special Education, 40(1), 21–38. https://doi.org/10.1017/
jse.2015.14
Soodak, L. C., & Podell, D. M. (1993). Teacher efficacy and student problem as factors in
special education referral. The Journal of Special Education, 27(1), 66–81. https://doi.
org/10.1177/002246699302700105
Soodak, L. C., Podell, D. M., & Lehman, L. R. (1998). Teacher, student, and school
attributes as predictors of teachers’ responses to inclusion. The Journal of Special
Education, 31(4), 480–497. https://doi.org/10.1177/002246699803100405
Specht, J., McGhie-Richmond, D., Loreman, T., Mirenda, P., Bennett, S., Gallagher, T., &
Cloutier, S. (2016). Teaching in inclusive classrooms: Efficacy and beliefs of
Canadian preservice teachers. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 20(1),
1–15. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2015.1059501
Talmor, R., Reiter, S., & Feigin, N. (2005). Factors relating to regular education teacher
burnout in inclusive education. European Journal of Special Needs Education, 20(2),
215–229. https://doi.org/10.1080/08856250500055735
Weißenfels, M., Benick, M., & Perels, F. (2021). Can teacher self-efficacy act as a buffer
against burnout in inclusive classrooms? International Journal of Educational
Research, 109, Article 101794. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijer.2021.101794
Woodcock, & Jones, G. (2020). Examining the interrelationship between teachers’ self-
efficacy and their beliefs towards inclusive education for all. Teacher Development, 24
(4), 583–602. https://doi.org/10.1080/13664530.2020.1803957