What Is the Relationship Between Early Childhood Teacher Turnover, Adult Staff Resilience and Resilient Leadership Practices at Licensed Early Childhood Centers?

This research investigated the relationship between adult resilience, resilient leadership practices, and variables that reflected turnover to learn if increasing adult resilience or resilience leadership practices is an avenue to reduce turnover of high quality early childhood education teachers. The areas of adult resilience and resilient leadership practices that were measured include relationships, initiative, internal beliefs, and self-control as itemized in the Devereux Adult Resilience Survey (DARS) and Devereaux Resilience Leadership Survey (DERLS). One-hundred and eighty-five adultsparticipated by completing a survey that gathered their individual information including demographic information like age, information related to turnover like how long they anticipated working at the current center, and responses to the DARS and DERLS. Administrators were also asked to provide center information, like whether turnover was the lower, the same, or higher than the previous year. Those who submitted a survey worked in early childhood centers from an urban area in a Midwestern State of American. The 185 adults who submitted a survey included 99 teachers and 86 administrators from 82 different licensed centers. They ranged in age from 25 to 63 years. A quantitative analysis included factor analysis that established composite variables for each of the DARS and DERLS areas. Statistical significance was analyzed using chi-square, one-way ANOVA, logistic regression, and linear regression. The researcher found many significant relationships. For example, centers with staff with higher DARS ratings had lower turnover and center directors with research recommended qualifications also significantly predicted turnover at the center. Applications include investing in early childhood at each of Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems to build the resilience of early childhood professionals.