Gratitude for teachers as a psychological resource for early adolescents: A mixed-methods study

Abstract

In this mixed-methods study, we examine students’ gratitude for their teachers and the implications of that gratitude for their psychological adaptation. We report findings that gratitude for teachers (GT) is, in fact, a resource for students facing difficult circumstances outside school. More specifically, our hierarchical multiple regression models demonstrate that this form of gratitude decreases the negative association between adverse life events and students’ life satisfaction. GT also decreases the positive association between negative life events and students’ perceived stress. Then, we use coded material from student interviews to illustrate how they understand the ways that their GT helps them manage challenges in their personal lives. We conclude that students’ GT buffers the negative impact of adverse life events, because it helps students attend to the positive interactions and mentorship they have with their teachers and maintain focus on their future-oriented goals.

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Keywords:

• Gratitude
• teachers
• negative life events
• early adolescents
• coping

Acknowledgements

The authors thank the students and schools that participated in the study, the team members in both research centers and Drs Sanne Smith, Benjamin Shear, Brian Galla, and Hyemin Han for their contributions.