EXPERIENCES AND PREDICTORS OF STRESS AMONG PRESCHOOL TEACHERS AND TEACHERS IN CROATIA DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

The aim of this study was to examine the experiences of stress among among preschool and school teachers during teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as to examine the predictive value of teachers' individual characteristics, causes of stress, coping strategies and social support, for the way in which they experience stress, job burnout and for what they hope for regarding the future. The online questionnaire was applied on sample of 491 school teachers and 316 preschool teachers. The results showed that both school and preschool teachers experienced the highest level of stress during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, and that the level of stress experienced during the pandemic was higher than before the pandemic. Preschool teachers perceived common causes of stress more intensly than some specific causes related to the COVID-19 pandemic, while the opposite was true for teachers. Individual characteristics of preschool and school teachers, causes of stress, coping strategies and social support prove to be related to the levels of stress, job burnout and hope for the future, but the predictive values (i.e., significant predictors), differ depending on the criterion and the group of respondents. The results indicate a positive contribution of self-efficacy, coping strategies and social support to the experience of stress among preschool teachers and teachers alike during the COVID-19 pandemic.