Stress symptoms, sources of stress and coping strategies of primary school teachers working in rural areas

The aim of this study is to determine the opinions of primary school teachers working in rural schools regarding their sources of stress, stress symptoms, and coping strategies. In this research, the phenomenological approach, one of the qualitative research designs, was employed. The phenomenological design seeks to understand and explain reality based on individuals' perspectives and experiences. The participants of the study were selected through criterion sampling, one of the purposeful sampling methods. Two main criteria were set: participants' voluntary involvement in the study and having worked in rural areas for at least five years. The study group consisted of 15 primary school teachers (8 male, 7 female) working in public primary schools under the Ministry of National Education in the rural areas of Tufanbeyli district, Adana province. The research data were collected using a semi-structured interview form developed by the researcher, consisting of five open-ended questions. Content analysis was used to analyze the data obtained from the interviews. The findings were presented under three main themes: sources of stress, stress symptoms, and coping strategies. According to the results, the most significant sources of stress for teachers in rural areas are parental indifference, heavy workload, physical inadequacies, and transportation problems. Stress mostly manifests itself through fatigue, irritability, headaches, anxiety, and increased smoking. Teachers cope with these situations by engaging in sports, participating in socio-cultural activities, seeking family support, relying on spiritual beliefs, and adopting positive thinking. Keywords: Stress, rural, classroom teacher.