Analysis and Comparison of Spiritual Work Motivation Dimensions in Teachers of Ordinary and Exceptional Schools in Qorveh City

Abstract

The purpose of the present study was to analyze and compare the dimensions of spiritual work motivation (service, meaning, and belonging) among teachers in ordinary and exceptional schools in Qorveh city. The research method was applied in terms of purpose and descriptive-causal comparative in terms of nature. The statistical population included all teachers in ordinary and exceptional schools in Qorveh city in the academic year 1403-1404. Using the convenience sampling method, 42 individuals (21 ordinary school teachers and 21 exceptional school teachers) were selected as the sample. The data collection tool was the standard Spiritual Work Motivation questionnaire by Li et al. (2024), which consists of 15 items and three dimensions: service, meaning, and belonging. The reliability of the instrument in the present study was obtained as 0.89 using Cronbach's alpha. SPSS software and descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation) and inferential statistics (Student's t-test) were used for data analysis. The research findings showed that there is a significant difference between the mean scores of overall spiritual work motivation and the dimensions of service and meaning among teachers in ordinary and exceptional schools, such that exceptional school teachers obtained higher scores. However, no significant difference was observed between the two groups in the dimension of belonging. The results indicate that due to the nature of their profession, exceptional school teachers have higher spiritual motivation in the dimensions of service and meaning, which can act as a supportive factor against job burnout.