Social Support and Well-Being of Chinese Special Education Teachers—An Emotional Labor Perspective

Due to their high expectations, teachers often hide their real emotions and play a role that conforms to public expectations of educational work. Special education teachers face a group of students with physical and mental disabilities who have high heterogeneity and require individualized services every day. Using social support theory, this study discusses special education teachers’ emotional labor and well-being. A total of 439 special education teachers in China participated in this study. We collected data at two different time-points and verified the research hypotheses with hierarchical regression and structural equation modeling analysis. The research findings show the mediating role of emotional labor in social support and well-being. It is, therefore, suggested that schools should pay more attention to special education teachers’ mental health and provide them with regular guidance and support.