Mindfulness and Resilience as Mediators in the Relationship Between Job-Related Stress and Teacher–Child Interaction Among Early Childhood Educators

Although teacher–child interaction has been recognized as an important indicator of quality in early care and education as well as a crucial predictor of children’s development, limited studies have explored the pathways of teachers’ job-related stress to interaction with young children. This study aimed to investigate the sequential mediating roles of the personal resources of mindfulness and resilience in the association between perceived job-related stress and teacher–child interaction among early childhood educators in Korea. Three-hundred and seven early childhood educators completed self-reported questionnaires measuring their perspectives regarding job-related stress and teacher–child interaction as well as mindfulness and resilience. The results revealed that job-related stress predicted low levels of teacher–child interaction after controlling for early childhood educators’ demographic characteristics and the partial mediation roles of mindfulness and resilience on the association. These findings highlight that greater attention to early childhood educators’ job-related stress and well-being is needed to enhance the quality of early childhood education and care. The findings also suggest the benefits of preventive intervention programs for early childhood educators targeting mindfulness and resilience.