Social Media's Role in Providing Social Support for Educators
The United States is currently facing large-scale teacher shortages because increasing stress and higher career demands are driving teachers to resign (Garcia & Weiss, 2020; Oyen & Schwinle, 2020). Social support is one factor that may prove beneficial in reducing occupational stress (Heitzmann & Kaplan, 1988). We tested the correlation between perception of social support and the use of Internet Occupational Social Support (IOSS) methods (e.g. Messaging Apps, Facebook, Instagram, etc.). Participants completed a survey based on the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support and rated how often they use various social media platforms on a 7-point Likert Scale (0: never, 1: once a year, 2: once every other month, 3: once a month, 4: once every other week, 5: multiple times a week, 6: daily). Survey results will demonstrate if there is a correlation between IOSS methods and perceived social support and provide insights into reducing educators’ occupation stress.
Keywords: Support , Teachers, Social Media , Stress, Occupational, Platforms
Topic(s):Psychology
Education
Presentation Type: Poster Presentation
Session: 2-7
Location: Student Union Building Activities Room
Time: 3:00