The impact of work values on the professional development of primary and secondary school teachers: A moderated mediation model

Abstract

This study explored the relationship between work values and primary and secondary school teachers’ professional development, as well as the mediating role of work engagement and the moderating role of perceived organizational support. Eight hundred and seventy-three primary and secondary school teachers were recruited at random to complete work values scale, work engagement scale, perceived organizational support scale, and professional development of primary and secondary schools teachers scale. The results revealed that work values positively predicted professional development; work engagement partially mediated the relationship between work values and professional development, and with the mediating effect accounted for 54.62% of the total effect; perceived organizational support regulated the direct path and the first half path of this mediation process. This study empirically clarified why (through work engagement) and when (perceived organizational support) work values were positively related to professional development among primary and secondary school teachers’ in China, contributing to the existing work values and teachers’ professional development literature. Future research could be encouraged to extend the findings by integrating theory of internal motivation with organizational support theory toward deepening current understanding of how and when work values can contribute to a teacher’s professional development.