Clinical Application of Rational-Emotive Health Education for Stress Management in Teachers
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.37506/ijphrd.v12i1.13877Keywords:
Clinical applications, irrational beliefs, rational-emotive behaviour therapy, rational-emotive health education, stress management, teacher stressAbstract
There is evidence that teachers encounter more stress than people in other professions. Stressors in teaching
include students’ misbehaviour, excess workload, and time pressure among others. Teachers in developing
countries like Nigeria encounter additional stressors outside common job stressors. Stressors peculiar to
teachers in developing countries include transportation issues, cultural challenges, and delays in payment
of salary. High level of stress in teaching results to health problems, burnout, absenteeism, attrition, and
students’ behavioural and academic underperformance. Stress management is necessary to reduce or
escape stress consequences, and rational-emotive behaviour therapy (REBT) has been widely applied to
stress management and behavioural issues across contexts. This review presents the finding of a study that
clinically applied Rational-Emotive Health Education Intervention (REHEI) Programme, developed from
the perspective of REBT principles for stress management in teachers. The finding shows that many teachers
undergo a high level of job stress and REHEI significantly reduced stress and irrational beliefs causing stress
among teachers. Implications for the study for policy and future studies were pointed out.