Occupational well-being of school staff

An action research project in Finland and Estonia shows that school communities can develop occupational well-being from their own starting points through different interventions. It is particularly fruitful to invest in working community development, as the working community seems to be an important factor in explaining occupational well-being.

The study took place in 2009-2014 and in spring 2018 it has been completed by a dissertation by Sari Laine. The purpose of the project was to promote occupational well-being of primary and upper secondary school staff in Finland and Estonia. The project was part of an international Schools for Health in Europe (SHE) study in the two countries. It was carried out in collaboration with the staff of 21 Finnish and 39 Estonian schools and a Finnish-Estonian research group consisting of researchers and experts from the University of Eastern Finland, the Estonian National Institute for Health Development and the Foundation for School Health Care, Estonia. The Department of Nursing Science of the University of Eastern Finland was responsible for the study.