The relationship between job stress, resilience, emotional intelligence, and job satisfaction among college teachers

• Published in: Scientific Reports
• Main Authors: Xieping Chen, Qian Xie
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-07-01
• Subjects: Job stress; Resilience; Emotional intelligence; Job satisfaction; College teachers
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-08692-x

Abstract College teachers face significant psychological challenges, such as high job stress and low emotional intelligence, which impact their job satisfaction and mental health. This study, guided by resilience theory and conservation of resources theory, explores how job stress and emotional intelligence affect job satisfaction, with resilience acting as a mediator and gender as a moderator. A cross-sectional study was conducted using an online questionnaire platform, with 1020 college teachers randomly selected to participate. Participants completed standardized scales measuring job stress, emotional intelligence, resilience, and job satisfaction. PLS-SEM was used to analyze the relationships among the variables. Resilience diminished the harmful effects of job stress on job satisfaction and boosted the impact of emotional intelligence. Gender differences were noted in the influence of these factors on job satisfaction. This research emphasizes how resilience plays a crucial role in boosting job satisfaction by alleviating the adverse effects of job stress and amplifying the positive influence of emotional intelligence. The gender-based analysis provides practical insights for improving working conditions and promoting resilience and emotional intelligence in teachers. Future research should explore these factors’ long-term effects.