A Longitudinal Quasi-Experimental Evaluation of a Cognitive-Behavioral Intervention in Teachers: Changes in Psychosocial Risks, Burnout, Depression, and Salivary Cortisol

Abstract

Burnout is recognized in the ICD-11 as an occupational phenomenon resulting from chronic work-related stress. In educational settings, psychosocial risks—particularly high job demands and insufficient resources—have been associated with burnout, depressive symptoms, and physiological stress dysregulation. This longitudinal quasi-experimental study examined changes associated with participation in a multicomponent cognitive–behavioral intervention among teachers. The sample comprised 66 primary and secondary school teachers (30 training, 36 non-training), further stratified according to high or low baseline levels of stress-related health problems. Measures included resource availability, self-efficacy, interpersonal conflicts, work overload, burnout, depressive symptoms, and salivary cortisol, assessed as total morning cortisol output using the area under the curve with respect to ground (AUCg), at baseline (T1), post-intervention (T2), and four-month follow-up (T3). The clearest pattern of statistically significant within-group changes was observed among trained teachers with high baseline stress-related health problems (TG-HHP; n = 13). From T1 to T2, this subgroup showed increased resource availability and self-efficacy and reductions in burnout (1.63 to 1.33; p = 0.013, d = 0.81), depressive symptoms (46.92 to 42.40; p = 0.032, d = 0.67), and morning cortisol AUCg (410.01 to 306.50; p = 0.018, d = 0.78). At T3, statistically significant changes relative to baseline were observed across all study variables. These findings provide preliminary evidence that participation in a structured cognitive–behavioral intervention may be associated with psychosocial, psychological, and physiological improvements, particularly among teachers with elevated baseline stress-related health problems.