Econ Papers Daily / 期刊论文
改善工作条件对教师流失的影响：工作压力水平的异质性反应
The Effects of Improving Working Conditions on Teacher Turnover: Heterogeneous Responses by Work Stress Levels
摘要
ABSTRACT Teacher shortages remain a persistent challenge in Dutch primary education. Improving working conditions may help retain current teachers and attract former ones, but the relative effectiveness and cost-efficiency of specific measures are not well understood. This study uses a vignette experiment to estimate how changes in six key working conditions influence the turnover intentions of current and former primary school teachers in the Netherlands. We find that wage increases and the provision of teaching assistants have the largest effects on both retaining current teachers and attracting former teachers, though they are not the most cost-efficient. Increased control over working time emerges as the most cost-efficient intervention. Our results also show that teachers who report higher levels of work stress, measured through their need for recovery, are more likely to consider leaving the profession. At the same time, these teachers respond more strongly to enhanced working conditions than their less-stressed peers. This suggests that the impact of workplace improvements depends in part on teachers’ existing stress levels. Finally, heterogeneity analyses by baseline turnover intentions, sex, age, and experience are informative about potential compositional effects and sorting mechanisms of specific interventions. The findings underscore the value of targeted policies that address both structural working conditions and teacher well-being.
中文摘要
荷兰初等教育长期面临教师短缺的挑战。改善工作条件可能有助于留住现有教师并吸引前教师重返岗位，但具体措施的相对有效性和成本效率尚不明确。本研究采用情境实验，估计六项关键工作条件的变化如何影响荷兰现任和前初等学校教师的离职意向。我们发现，工资增长和配备教学助理对留住现任教师和吸引前教师的效果最大，尽管它们并非最具成本效率。增加对工作时间的自主控制则是最具成本效率的干预措施。研究结果还表明，通过恢复需求衡量的工作压力水平较高的教师，更可能考虑离开这一职业。同时，这些教师对工作条件改善的反应比压力较低的同行更为强烈。这表明，工作场所改善措施的效果在一定程度上取决于教师现有的压力水平。最后，基于基线离职意向、性别、年龄和经验的异质性分析，为特定干预措施可能带来的构成效应和分选机制提供了信息。研究结果凸显了针对结构性工作条件和教师福祉两方面制定有针对性的政策的价值。