Investigation of the relationship between preschool teachers' cognitive flexibility and job burnout levels

In this study, cognitive flexibility and professional burnout levels of preschool teachers and the relationship between them are examined in terms of various variables. This research is a quantitative research in the screening model. The sample of the study is consisted of 229 (218 female, 11 male) preschool teachers who are working in public/private kindergartens/nursery classes in the provinces and districts of Samsun Provincial Directorate of National Education in the spring term of the 2020-2021 academic year. In this study, Personal Information Form, Cognitive Flexibility Inventory and Burnout Scale were used and the survey results were analyzed in the Statistical Package Program for Social Sciences (SPSS). Confirmatory factor analysis was performed in the Linear Structural Relations (LISREL) program. The point-scatter graphs obtained for the fit analysis and visual representations of the relationship were created in the Minitab program. According to the research, it has been observed that there is a difference in the cognitive flexibility levels of preschool teachers according to their marital status, educational status, the program/department they graduated from, and the socio-economic status of the school environment. It has been determined that there is a difference in the professional burnout levels of the preschool teachers who participated in the research according to their professional seniority, type of school they work, the undergraduate program/department they graduated from, the location of the school and the socio-economic status of their surroundings. It was determined that there was a statistically significant and negative correlation between the general cognitive flexibility levels of the teachers participating in the study and their emotional exhaustion, mental exhaustion, physical exhaustion and general burnout levels. Accordingly, it is said that the increase in teachers' general cognitive flexibility levels causes a decrease in their emotional, mental, physical exhaustion and general burnout levels, albeit slightly. In line with the results of the research, a suggest to conduct a qualitative research for future research was presented.