Time to talk! Teachers' Perception of Organizational Communication and Work Related Health

During recent years school teachers in Sweden have experienced many reforms resulting in altered conditions of work. Many teachers have reported an increased workload and reduced well-being. In addition, teachers as a group are scrutinized and questioned by the surrounding society. This thesis aims to expand the knowledge base concerning how teachers communicate and interact in their profession. The overall aims of the thesis are:

1)To qualitatively examine and describe workplace communication practices among primary and lower secondary school teachers (grundskola).
2)To quantitatively examine and describe to what extent primary and lower secondary school teachers report satisfaction with the communication practices in their school as well as how they assess their current need for feedback, their expressed feedback-seeking behavior and how they feel they are treated at work.
3)To examine and describe to what extent primary and lower secondary school teachers express work related health concerns and in what way those concerns are related to communication practices in their school.

The results will expand our understanding of how work environment for teachers can be supported and developed. If new and better strategies for supporting learning environments are identified and implemented, then schools as organizations will benefit by having employees better prepared to undertake the roles of teachers as well as learners.