Which teachers were most affected in terms of mental health during the strict COVID-19 lockdown in Spain?

Abstract

This study looks at the effect that the compulsory COVID-19 lockdown restrictions introduced by the Spanish government had on the quality of life of teachers working in the Spanish education system, i.e. those teaching at early years, primary, secondary, tertiary vocational training and university education levels. Participants completed a questionnaire that included the 7-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-7) along with other questions relating to their wellbeing from the European Quality of Life Survey (EQLS). A total of 668 teachers responded to the questionnaire, which was generated using Microsoft Forms and distributed in an online format. The results confirm significant levels of abnormal anxiety during prolonged lockdown. We perform a multivariate analysis that shows that, whatever the level of anxiety, two variables are always significant in all the contrast models: participants felt the effects of lockdown on a personal level and found it difficult to carry out their work. The results also indicate that teachers working in primary and secondary education were those most affected by the strict, prolonged lockdown and that female teachers suffered much higher levels of anxiety than male teachers. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)