The Mediating Role of Multidimensional Stress Between Resources and Job Burnout Among Music Teachers in China

Background: Teacher burnout is a critical concern in education, with music educators particularly vulnerable due to subject marginalization, heavy workloads, and limited institutional support. This study examined how personal and social resources are associated with burnout through stress processes. Methods: Using Conservation of Resources (COR) theory, this study explored the mediating role of multidimensional stress in the relationship between resources and burnout among 446 Chinese primary and secondary music teachers. Self-efficacy represented an individual resource, and perceived organizational support (POS) a social resource. Structural equation modeling was used to test direct and indirect associations. Results: Both self-efficacy and POS were negatively associated with burnout. Job, role, and interpersonal stress significantly mediated these relationships: higher levels of resources were associated with lower stress, which, in turn, was associated with lower rates of burnout. When stress was included in the model, it exerted a suppression effect on the direct relationships between resources and burnout, suggesting that abundant resources may heighten sensitivity to stress when work demands are poorly managed or role expectations are unclear. Conclusions: The findings underscore the importance of managing multidimensional stress to alleviate burnout among music teachers. Enhancing self-efficacy and POS, while addressing role ambiguity and resource scarcity, may be critical to mitigate burnout risk. This study extends COR theory by clarifying how specific stress dimensions shape the resource-burnout link within marginalized teaching contexts.