Perceived social support at work and teacher health

Abstract

This article aimed to analyze the relationship between perceived social support at work and prevalence of physical damage and common mental disorders among teachers of public basic education working in the southern region of Minas Gerais, Brazil. A total of 452 teachers responded to the Perceived Social Support at Work Scale; the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12); to a physical damage survey scale, elaborated from one of the factors of the Inventory on Work and Risks of Illness and a sociodemographic and labor form. The results showed that perceived social support at work presented a predictive power for teaching illness, especially common mental disorders. The predictive contributions of the dimensions of instrumental and emotional social support were highlighted, the first in relation to common mental disorders and body pain and the second in relation to common mental disorders and biological disorders.