School leadership and teacher stress: Unpacking the mediating role of job satisfaction and the employment status as a moderator

This study investigates the influence of leadership practices on workplace stress among UAE teachers, with job satisfaction examined as a mediator and employment status as a moderator. Data were drawn from 7997 teachers who participated in the 2022 Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) and analyzed using structural equation modeling. The findings demonstrate that leadership practices enhance teachers' job satisfaction, which in turn reduces their workplace stress. Job satisfaction emerged as a key explanatory mechanism, while employment status affected stress levels directly but did not significantly alter the leadership–satisfaction link. Beyond these statistical relationships, the findings highlight the centrality of job satisfaction in multicultural and high-accountability school systems, such as the UAE, where expatriate teachers form the majority. These results highlight the importance of supportive leadership in promoting teacher well-being by fostering job satisfaction. The study contributes to international scholarship on teacher stress by showing that leadership development must be paired with systemic reforms addressing workload, accountability, and resources to effectively support teacher retention and well-being.