The Relationship between Work Engagement, Academic Optimism, and Teachers' Job Performance

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between work engagement, academic optimism, and teacherschr('39') job performance. To achieve this goal, the descriptive-correlational research method was used. The statistical population of the study consisted of 4830 elementary teachers in Karaj in the 2017-18 school year. The sample consisted of 350 individuals who were selected according to Krejcie & Morgan table (1970) via random stratified cluster sampling. The instruments included Work Engagement Scale (Schaufeli, Martinez, Pinto, Salanova & Bakker, 2002), the Job Performance Questionnaire (Paterson, 1990), and Teacherschr('39') Academic Optimism Questionnaire (Beard, Hoy, & Woolfolk Hoy, 2010). The validity of the questionnaires was assessed by seeking experts’ opinions, and their reliability was examined via Cronbachchr('39')s alpha test. For data analysis, descriptive and inferential statistics, including Pearson correlation coefficient and simultaneous multiple regression analysis were used. The results demonstrated that there was a direct and significant relationship between the job performance of teachers and work engagement and components of absorption, vigor and dedication. It is worth mentioning that work engagement and components of absorption, vigor and dedication could account for 28, 22, 26, and 32 percent of the variance in teachers’ job performance, respectively. Furthermore, there was a direct and significant relationship between teacherschr('39') job performance and their optimism, and the components of collective productivity, trust in parents and students, and academic emphasis.  It is noteworthy that optimism and the components of collective productivity, trust in parents and students, and academic emphasis had the potential to predict 26, 25, 25, and 29 percent of the variance in teacherschr('39') job performance.