Linking School Culture to Teachers’ Psychological Empowerment and Subjective Well-Being: A Multilevel Mediation Study

Linking School Culture to Teachers’ Psychological Empowerment and Subjective Well-Being: A Multilevel Mediation Study | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Linking School Culture to Teachers’ Psychological Empowerment and Subjective Well-Being: A Multilevel Mediation Study Muslim ALANOGLU, Rebin Salih KHUDHUR, Zülfü DEMİRTAŞ This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-9054256/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 12 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract This study examines the relationship between school culture and teachers’ subjective well-being by considering the mediating role of psychological empowerment. A cross-sectional relational research design was employed, and data were analyzed using multilevel structural equation modeling. The study sample consisted of 481 teachers working in public schools in Erbil city, Kurdistan Region of Iraq. The findings indicate that school culture has a positive and significant effect on teachers’ subjective well-being at both the individual and school levels. In addition, school culture was found to strongly predict teachers’ psychological empowerment at the school level. Psychological empowerment, in turn, was positively associated with teachers’ subjective well-being and played a significant mediating role in the relationship between school culture and well-being. These findings demonstrate that caring and supportive school cultures are relevant to empowering teachers and improving their psychological functioning. Based on these results, the discussion highlights the effects of school culture on the empowerment experiences of teachers and the impact of empowerment on increased subjective well-being. The findings give strong suggestions that positive school cultures have to be developed to encourage teacher well-being, especially in centralized education systems. Figures Figure 1 Figure 2 Introduction The educational systems rely on teachers to be successful, and their Subjective Well-Being has become the topic of increasing concern among researchers and policymakers because of its systematic association with the quality of instruction, student outcomes, and school functioning [ 1 , 2 ]. Teacher Subjective Well-Being is the meaning of emotional, psychological, and professional functioning of the teachers and is generally accepted as a multidimensional construct that describes the experiences and perceptions of the teachers concerning their professional life [ 3 , 4 ]. Instead of being defined by personal traits, teachers' subjective well-being is perceived as being institutionalized in organizational and situational circumstances that exist in schools. School culture takes one of the leading positions among these conditions as the common organizational context by means of which the experiences, attitudes, and behaviors of teachers are placed [ 5 , 6 ]. According to the previous literature, school cultures, which involve trust and collaboration, as well as professional support, have a positive relationship with teacher commitment, job satisfaction, and organizational effectiveness [ 7 , 8 ]. On the other hand, disjointed or out-of-sync school cultures are often linked to increased stress, emotional burnout, and less professional involvement by teachers [ 9 ]. The school culture, therefore, in this regard, is a relevant social and psychological background in which the subjective well-being of teachers is being formed and experienced instead of being directly defined. Psychological empowerment is one of the mechanisms that are regularly mentioned in the literature as the means of relating school culture to teacher outcomes. Psychologically empowered educators see their work as purposeful, competent in their professional activities, discriminating in their professional choices, and feel that their efforts can influence the processes in the schools [ 10 , 11 ]. Empirical research indicates that psychological empowerment is positively linked with job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and reduced burnout rates among the teachers [ 10 , 18 , 21 ] The school cultures that focus on professional dialogue and shared sense of responsibility are especially related to mutual perceptions of agency and professional influence among teachers [ 12 , 14 , 49 ]. Conversely, hierarchical and control-oriented cultures are associated with low levels of perception of autonomy, competence, and power [ 13 ]. Although much has been done in terms of studying the school culture and psychological empowerment individually, there is a lack of empirical studies combining school culture, psychological empowerment, and teacher subjective well-being in a single multilevel model. The current literature is mainly divided into studies that concentrate on the school climate and job satisfaction [ 15 , 16 ] or on the studies that concentrate on the psychological empowerment and organizational commitment [ 17 , 18 ], which offer limited empirical evidence around the relationship between psychological empowerment and the association between school culture and teacher subjective well-being. Knowledge of such relational pathways is valuable in guiding leadership practices and organizational policies that can be used to maintain a healthy, productive teaching workforce. Based on the instruction on the relevance of the multilevel analyses in the study of relations between organizational settings and employee performance [ 19 , 22 ], the study investigates the multilevel correlation between school culture, psychological empowerment, and teacher subjective well-being. Particularly, it examines (a) the relationship between school culture and teachers’ subjective well-being, (b) the relationship between school culture and psychological empowerment of schools, and (c) the statistical association between school culture and teacher subjective well-being. Literature Review School Culture Due to its significance, the concept of school culture has been extensively examined in educational research and practice [ 27 , 28 , 29 ]. It was assumed that school culture is one of the most powerful organizational variables because it is correlated with the working conditions of teachers, with the establishment of norms of interaction, leadership styles, and demands towards professionalism [ 34 ]. Positive school cultures are often correlated with increased participation in collegial support, collective responsibility, and professional development opportunities, which, in turn, are related to teacher motivation and engagement [ 27 ]. The given cultural conditions are also associated with the institutional efficacy and personal and professional growth of teachers [ 30 ]. School culture has been widely understood to mean the common beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors that define a school and determine the interactions and experiences of the members of the school [ 31 ]. The concept of school culture has many definitions depending on the social and organizational settings [ 28 ], but the general concept of school culture is the agreed set of values, beliefs, and practices that determine the behavior of people in the school. [ 32 ] conceptualized school culture as the patterns of meanings and traditions that tend to guide the school functioning and the way teachers view their professional roles. Similarly, [ 33 ] also stressed that school culture comprises group norms and interpersonal relations that influence how teachers perceive their workplace. These cultural factors are directly connected to the level to which teachers are supported, trusted, and included in decision-making processes and the interpretation of the institutional expectations. School culture may thus be seen as a systemic and relational structure that assists the teachers to make sense of their work experiences as well as their place within the school structure. School Context in the Kurdistan Region Government of Iraq (KRG) The given study is located in the educational background of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) of Iraq and dwells upon the connection between the organizational status of schools and the psychological empowerment and subjective well-being of the teachers. The KRG education system is highly centralized in its administration in terms of which curriculum design, leadership appointments, and major administrative decisions are mostly under the control of the Ministry of Education, but schools are left to have some autonomy. Past studies have shown that these centralized systems of governance are linked to the practices of hierarchical decision-making and poor participation of teachers at the school level [ 20 , 23 ] Whereas centralized systems could guarantee uniformity and standardization in administration, empirical investigations propose that less school autonomy and bureaucratic approach tend to be associated with weaker school culture and decreased teacher motivation [ 24 , 25 ] Empirical research implemented in the KRG setting demonstrates the relevance of collegial support, cooperation, and professional growth to the establishment of positive school cultures and the improvement of the subjective well-being of teachers. There is a greater degree of job satisfaction and commitment to the organization in the school conditions that encourage the use of recognition, cooperation, and shared responsibility. On the other hand, stress and emotional burnout are often related to low administrative support and workloads, which highlights the importance of school cultures based on empowerment and well-being [ 26 ]. In this context, the school culture offers a critical analytical perspective of how the common organizational norms, relations, and values pertain to the professional experiences of teachers. Studies have indicated that a positively related school culture that is based on collaboration and trust is linked to shared psychological empowerment, especially where the education system does not have centralized power and power distance is high [ 14 ]. In that regard, the review of school culture within the KRG framework can be useful in terms of understanding the relationships between the organizational conditions of the school-level and the outcomes of empowerment and individual well-being in teachers. Psychological Empowerment The phenomenon of psychological empowerment has received significant academic and managerial attention because of its established relevance to organizational performance and employee development [ 18 , 34 , 35 ]. Empowerment is widely described as a strategic approach adopted by organizations to support higher levels of autonomy and responsibility among employees in their work roles [ 37 , 36 ]. Employees who report higher levels of empowerment tend to demonstrate greater creativity, adaptability to organizational change, and higher levels of job performance [ 38 , 39 ]. The implications of these outcomes are associated not only with organizational effectiveness but also with the personal and professional development of teachers [ 40 ]. The literature further suggests that psychological empowerment does not emerge in isolation; rather, it is embedded within the social and cultural structures of schools. Conducive school climates that foster participation, shared values, and collaborative work relationships provide environments in which teachers are more likely to experience higher levels of empowerment [ 29 , 41 ]. In most conceptualizations, psychological empowerment is framed as a motivational construct consisting of the dimensions of meaning, competence, self-determination, and impact [ 43 ]. Consistent with this perspective, [ 42 ] conceptualized psychological empowerment as a collection of work-related beliefs shaped by the organizational environment, reflecting how individuals orient themselves toward their job roles. Psychological empowerment has been defined in various ways across social and organizational contexts [ 44 ]. Building on these earlier formulations, it is most commonly theorized in motivational terms and conceptualized through a set of cognitive dimensions. Thomas and Velthouse [ 77 ] identified four core elements of empowerment—meaning, competence, self-determination, and impact—which reflect individuals’ cognitive appraisals of their work roles. These dimensions are conceptually aligned with later empowerment frameworks, indicating the extent to which employees perceive their work as purposeful, feel capable of fulfilling job requirements, experience autonomy in decision-making processes, and believe that they can exert influence within the organization. Accordingly, psychological empowerment can be understood as a subjective evaluation of employees' perceived autonomy, competence, and capacity to influence their work environment in meaningful ways. Subjective Well-Being The quality of life and functioning at work are critical dimensions from the perspective of individuals’ overall quality of life and their performance in occupational settings [ 19 , 20 , 46 ]. The topic of subjective well-being has thus gained supplementary and more attention in psychology and education studies. Subjective well-being has been argued to be a relevant measure of the way people evaluate and experience their working lives, which can also be greatly applied in the education field. Increased levels of subjective well-being are linked to increased job satisfaction, motivation, and adaptive functionality, whereas low levels of subjective well-being are connected to stress and emotional strain [ 47 , 48 ]. In this regard, the subjective well-being of teachers is considered to be one of the keys to maintaining a positive teaching process and long-term professional involvement [ 51 ]. The concept of teacher subjective well-being is associated with positive psychological functioning at the workplace, especially in the sense of instructional efficacy and the sense of connectedness and belonging of teachers to a school setting [ 50 ]. Subjective well-being can be a varying factor based on the personal and organizational situations, but it is usually described as a multidimensional process that includes both cognitive and affective elements [ 48 , 52 ]. Subjective well-being is the perceptions and ratings of the lives of individuals themselves, including their general life satisfaction and the proportion between positive and negative affect. This sight asserts that objective conditions are not the only determinants of subjective well-being, but also the perceptions and interpretations people have of their lived experiences. In the academic contexts, these dimensions represent how well the teachers are content with their vocation and have positive emotions, including enthusiasm and fulfillment, in their day-to-day activity, instead of negative ones, including anxiety and frustration. According to this interpretation, the subjective well-being of the teachers can be viewed as a subjective assessment of the quality of their professional life and their feelings in the school environment. Conceptual Framework and Hypotheses The conceptual framework of this research is grounded in theories of school culture and positive organizational scholarship, which emphasize the role of shared norms, values, and social relationships in shaping educational processes and outcomes [ 53 ]. The school culture can be defined as a set of common values, beliefs, norms, and practices that guide interactions and decision-making processes within the school community. Trust, collaboration, open communication, and shared responsibility are widely recognized as core features of positive school cultures [ 54 , 55 ] Such cultural conditions are closely associated with teachers’ psychological empowerment. Participation, collegiality, and mutual respect within school environments are associated with stronger perceptions of autonomy, competence, and professional influence among teachers [ 56 , 57 , 58 ]. Similarly, cultures characterized by support and trust are related to teachers’ sense of professional agency and perceived control over instructional and organizational processes [ 59 ]. This relationship is particularly salient in education systems with hierarchical organizational structures, where collaborative and participatory school cultures may function as relational contexts that balance centralized control and facilitate teacher participation in decision-making [ 60 ] Teachers’ subjective well-being is likewise systematically associated with school culture. Favorable and team-oriented school cultures are linked to lower levels of professional stress and emotional exhaustion and higher levels of job satisfaction and organizational commitment [ 7 , 61 ]. Emotionally safe and trust-based environments are associated with teachers’ capacity to manage work-related demands more effectively (Cohen et al., 2009). Within the Job Demands–Resources framework, job resources—such as supportive leadership and positive collegial relationships—are theorized to promote employees’ well-being and motivation [ 8 ]. In school settings, a positive school culture and school climate therefore function as key organizational resources that are associated with enhanced levels of teachers’ subjective well-being [ 62 , 63 ]. In addition, psychological empowerment is conceptualized as a central mechanism through which school culture is related to teachers’ subjective well-being. In school cultures characterized by autonomy, recognition, and professional collaboration, teachers are more likely to report higher levels of intrinsic motivation and emotional resilience, which are associated with elevated levels of subjective well-being [ 17 , 64 , 65 , 66 ]. From this perspective, psychological empowerment is expected to operate as a mediating construct linking school culture and teachers’ subjective well-being. Based on this theoretical and empirical grounding, the following hypotheses are proposed. School culture is a contextual process through which the work environment is related to the psychological and emotional functioning of teachers. The collective norms, leadership practices, and interpersonal relationships embedded in school culture are systematically associated with how teachers perceive their workplace conditions, evaluate their professional identities, and regulate their work-related emotions. Social and emotional resources provided through supportive leadership, collegial trust, and collaborative practices are linked to lower levels of stress and more positive affective experiences, which in turn are associated with higher levels of teachers’ subjective well-being. [ 63 ] Empirical research provides consistent support for this relational mechanism. Thien and Lee [ 76 ] demonstrated that leadership practices and collaborative norms within school culture were significantly associated with teachers’ subjective well-being. Similarly, [ 67 ] found that positive school climate was related to lower emotional exhaustion and higher levels of workplace well-being among teachers. Together, these findings suggest that school culture is systematically related to teachers’ subjective well-being by shaping their psychological and emotional experiences within the work environment, supporting a positive association between school culture and teacher subjective well-being. H1 Teachers’ individual perceptions of school culture are positively associated with their subjective well-being at the individual (within) level. Psychological empowerment is a motivational construct that is expressed through four core cognitions: meaning, competence, self-determination, and impact [ 43 ]. Empowered teachers tend to value their work as meaningful, perceive themselves as competent in their profession, experience autonomy in instructional practices, and believe that their efforts can make a meaningful contribution to school functioning. Although these perceptions are experienced by individual teachers, psychological empowerment is closely embedded within the organizational context in which teachers work. School culture constitutes a central organizational context that is systematically associated with teachers’ psychological empowerment. School cultures characterized by shared leadership, trust, collaboration, and professional autonomy are associated with greater teacher involvement in decision-making processes and higher levels of initiative [ 9 ]. From the perspective of social cognitive theory, positive and supportive environments are related to enhanced self-efficacy and perceived control, which represent fundamental components of psychological empowerment [ 69 ]. Empirical research provides consistent evidence for the association between school culture and teacher empowerment. In a structural equation modeling study, [ 55 ] found that school culture was significantly associated with psychological empowerment among teachers. Similarly, [ 70 ] reported that school cultures characterized by empowerment were linked to higher levels of professional agency and responsibility among teachers. Taken together, these findings indicate that teachers are more likely to experience higher levels of psychological empowerment in schools where collaborative norms, shared values, and supportive leadership practices are widely established. H2 School-level school culture is positively associated with school-level psychological empowerment. Although psychological empowerment is experienced by individuals, it may also emerge as a collective perception at the organizational level, particularly in schools where teachers collaborate closely and where leadership practices and school culture shape shared experiences. Psychological empowerment is commonly conceptualized through the dimensions of meaning, competence, self-determination, and impact [ 43 ]. Collective perceptions of empowerment may develop through ongoing social interaction and shared experiences within work groups, through which teachers gradually arrive at similar beliefs regarding their autonomy, influence, and professional value within the school [ 67 ]. A growing body of research indicates that psychological empowerment is positively associated with employees’ well-being and positive affect in the workplace [ 67 , 55 ]. In educational settings, empowered teachers have been found to report higher levels of job satisfaction, professional fulfillment, and emotional well-being [ 13 , 68 ]. School-level psychological empowerment represents a shared motivational climate that is closely linked to individual empowerment experiences [ 71 ]. From a multilevel perspective, this suggests that collective empowerment within a school is systematically related to individual teachers’ well-being outcomes. Accordingly, when teachers within a school share a high level of psychological empowerment, they are more likely to report higher levels of subjective well-being. H3B School-level psychological empowerment is positively associated with teachers’ subjective well-being at the individual (within) level. Such positive psychological outcomes as job satisfaction, work engagement, and emotional subjective well-being are closely associated with psychological empowerment. Teachers who report higher levels of psychological empowerment tend to perceive their work as meaningful, feel competent in performing their professional tasks, and experience a greater sense of autonomy, which is associated with higher motivation and lower levels of work-related stress [ 73 ]. This relationship can be explained through self-determination theory [ 16 ], which posits that the fulfillment of basic psychological needs—namely autonomy, competence, and relatedness—is associated with enhanced levels of subjective well-being. These needs are reflected and supported within the work context through psychological empowerment, as empowerment captures employees’ perceptions of autonomy, competence, and meaningful contribution. Consequently, empowered teachers are more likely to experience professional enrichment and demonstrate greater resilience to work-related stressors. Empirical evidence consistently supports the positive association between psychological empowerment and subjective well-being. According to [ 12 ], psychological empowerment was significantly associated with teachers’ subjective well-being. Similarly, [ 43 ] found that teachers’ perceptions of autonomy and competence were negatively associated with emotional exhaustion and positively associated with job satisfaction and work engagement. Taken together, these findings indicate that higher levels of individual psychological empowerment are systematically related to more positive psychological functioning and greater well-being among teachers. H3W Teachers’ individual psychological empowerment is positively associated with their subjective well-being at the individual (within) level. A mediating perspective suggests that the association between school culture and teachers’ subjective well-being operates indirectly through psychological empowerment. Stated differently, school cultures characterized by supportive and collaborative features are systematically associated with higher levels of psychological empowerment, which in turn are related to teachers’ subjective well-being. This relational process is consistent with social cognitive theory, which posits that environmental conditions shape individuals’ cognitive beliefs, and these beliefs are subsequently associated with emotional and behavioral outcomes [ 69 ]. From this perspective, school culture provides a shared contextual environment that is closely linked to teachers’ collective empowerment beliefs, which are in turn associated with individual-level well-being outcomes. The individual links required for such a mediating relationship are supported by empirical evidence. Psychological empowerment is systematically associated with school culture [ 75 ], and teachers’ subjective well-being is positively associated with psychological empowerment [ 44 ]. Although direct tests of this specific mediation model in educational settings remain limited, evidence from organizational research demonstrates similar indirect processes, in which empowerment functions as a mediating mechanism linking organizational conditions to employee well-being [ 55 , 67 ]. H4 School-level psychological empowerment mediates the relationship between school-level school culture and teachers’ subjective well-being at the individual level. Based on the preceding theoretical framework, Fig. 1 presents the proposed multilevel model linking school culture, psychological empowerment, and teachers’ subjective well-being. In the model, school culture and psychological empowerment are specified at the school level (between-level), whereas teachers’ subjective well-being is examined at the individual level (within-level), allowing both direct and indirect cross-level associations to be tested. Method The research design that was used in this study was a cross-sectional survey and a quantitative study approach. The primary methodology used was structural equation modeling (SEM). SEM is a multivariate statistical technique that allows investigating complicated associations of both observed variables and unobservable constructs in a theoretically defined model. [ 73 , 75 ]. SEM enables the researcher to test theory-based hypotheses by estimating many dependence relationships simultaneously in a flexible and comprehensive way [ 45 ]. Sampling and Participants The study sample consisted of 481 teachers working in public schools in Erbil city, Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRG) during the 2025–2026 academic year. The participating teachers were drawn from 52 schools, representing different school types and educational levels. Participants were selected using a convenience sampling technique due to practical considerations related to access to schools, time constraints, and financial limitations. Data were collected using an online questionnaire administered through Google Forms. School principals were contacted and informed about the purpose of the study, and permission was obtained before data collection. The survey link was distributed to teachers through school principals and professional communication channels. Participation was voluntary and anonymous. The final sample consisted of 481 teachers from 52 public schools. Of the participants, 287 (59.7%) were female, and 194 (40.3%) were male. Regarding school level, 222 teachers (46.2%) were employed in primary schools, 143 (29.7%) in middle schools, and 116 (24.1%) in high schools. The number of participating teachers per school ranged from 7 to 13, with an average of 9.25 teachers per school. Given that there are 2,492 public schools in Erbil city, the online questionnaire (Google Forms) was distributed to 72 schools through school principals, and data collection was concluded after a one-month administration period, yielding the present sample. Independent variable School culture was assessed using the 17-item School Culture Survey originally developed by Wagner [ 30 ] and subsequently employed in international school improvement research, including applications reported by GLISI [ 23 ]. The scale captures shared norms, values, and professional practices within schools across the dimensions of professional collaboration, affiliative collegiality, and collective self-determination/efficacy [77 78]. Responses were recorded on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 1 ( Never ) to 5 ( Always or Almost Always ), with higher scores indicating more positive perceptions of school culture. Multilevel Confirmatory Factor Analysis (MCFA) was conducted to examine the factorial validity of the school culture construct at both the teacher (within) and school (between) levels. The results indicated that the measurement model demonstrated an acceptable overall fit to the data (χ²/df = 3.28; RMSEA = .069; CFI = .913; TLI = .900; SRMR_WITHIN = .077; SRMR_BETWEEN = .059). All factor loadings were statistically significant at both levels (p < .001), with standardized loadings ranging from .629 to .821 at the within level and from .977 to 1.000 at the between level, indicating strong item–factor relationships and supporting the conceptualization of school culture as a shared contextual construct. Convergent validity and reliability were further supported by the Average Variance Extracted (AVE) and Composite Reliability (CR) values. At the teacher level, AVE and CR values were .516 and .947, respectively, exceeding recommended thresholds. At the school level, AVE and CR values were exceptionally high (AVE = .987; CR = .999), indicating that aggregated school culture scores reliably represent collective perceptions at the school level. Internal consistency reliability was also examined using Cronbach’s alpha and McDonald’s omega coefficients. The results showed very high internal consistency for the school culture scale (α = .967; ω = .967), providing further evidence of the reliability of the instrument. Mediation variable Psychological empowerment was measured using the 12-item Psychological Empowerment Instrument originally developed by Spreitzer [ 43 ]. The instrument includes four dimensions with three items each: meaning, competence, self-determination, and impact [ 28 , 67 ]. Items were rated on a 7-point Likert scale ranging from very strongly disagree to very strongly agree , with higher scores indicating higher psychological empowerment. Multilevel Confirmatory Factor Analysis (MCFA) was conducted to evaluate the measurement model across teacher (within) and school (between) levels. Overall fit indices indicated acceptable fit at the within level and mixed fit at the between level (χ²/df = 3.67; RMSEA = .074; CFI = .956; TLI = .943; SRMR_WITHIN = .082; SRMR_BETWEEN = .076). All standardized factor loadings were statistically significant (p < .001), ranging from .758 to .850 at the within level and from .972 to .996 at the between level, indicating strong indicator–factor relations across dimensions. Convergent validity and reliability were supported by AVE and CR estimates derived from standardized loadings (averaged across the four first-order dimensions). At the within level, AVE and CR values were AVE_WITHIN = .628 and CR_WITHIN = .835, respectively, exceeding recommended thresholds. At the between-level, AVE and CR values were exceptionally high (AVE_BETWEEN = .989; CR_BETWEEN = .996), consistent with psychological empowerment functioning as a highly shared construct at the school level. Internal consistency was also very high (α = .975; ω = .975). Dependent variable Teacher subjective well-being was assessed using the Teacher Subjective Well-Being Questionnaire (TSWQ) developed by Renshaw et al. [ 50 ]. The scale consists of eight items representing two dimensions: teaching efficacy and school connectedness, capturing teachers’ positive psychological functioning and their perceptions of effectiveness and belonging within the school context [ 29 , 50 ]. Responses were recorded on a 4-point Likert scale ranging from 1 ( Almost never ) to 4 ( Almost always ), with higher scores indicating higher levels of teacher well-being. Multilevel Confirmatory Factor Analysis (MCFA) was conducted to examine the factorial validity of the TSWQ at both the teacher (within) and school (between) levels. The results indicated a good overall fit to the data (χ²/df = 2.06; RMSEA = .047; CFI = .984; TLI = .976; SRMR_WITHIN = .028; SRMR_BETWEEN = .024). At the within level, standardized factor loadings ranged from .675 to .830 for the two first-order factors, indicating moderate to strong relationships between the observed indicators and their respective latent dimensions. At the between-level, standardized factor loadings were uniformly high, ranging from .967 to .997, suggesting that teacher subjective well-being functions as a highly shared construct across schools. Internal consistency reliability was examined using Cronbach’s alpha and McDonald’s omega coefficients. Both coefficients indicated high internal consistency for the TSWQ (α = .934; ω = .934), providing strong evidence for the reliability of the scale in the present sample. In the analysis we performed, gender and teaching experience as control variables, the years of experience (seniority) of the teachers varied between 3 and 17 years, with an average of 8.78 (SD = 3.17) years, and finally, the gender of the teachers was coded 0 = female and 1 = male. Data Analysis Data analyses were conducted using Mplus (version 8.11) [ 56 ]. Before the main analyses, the dataset was screened for missing data and outliers. Subsequently, descriptive statistics, including arithmetic means and standard deviations, as well as Pearson product–moment correlation coefficients, were computed for all study variables. The proposed analytical framework corresponds to a 2–2–1 multilevel mediation model, where school-level school culture predicts individual-level teacher subjective well-being both directly and indirectly through school-level psychological empowerment, consistent with the recommendations of [ 64 ] The internal consistency reliability of the measurement instruments was evaluated using Cronbach’s alpha and McDonald’s omega, with values of .70 or higher considered acceptable. To assess the potential presence of multicollinearity among the variables, correlation coefficients, tolerance values, and variance inflation factor (VIF) values were examined. Consistent with established guidelines, VIF values below 5 and tolerance values above .20 were taken to indicate the absence of serious multicollinearity problems [ 31 , 45 , 54 ]. The results indicated that multicollinearity did not pose a concern for the subsequent analyses. To determine whether a multilevel analytical approach was warranted, intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC₁) were calculated for school culture, psychological empowerment, and teacher subjective well-being. The ICC₁ values for all three variables exceeded the .05 threshold, indicating that a meaningful proportion of variance was attributable to between-school differences rather than solely to individual-level variation. These findings justified the use of a multilevel modeling framework [ 45 , 52 , 71 ]. To further evaluate the reliability of school-level aggregated scores, ICC₂ coefficients were calculated. ICC₂ values exceeding .70 for school culture and psychological empowerment indicated that these constructs could be reliably interpreted as shared, collective characteristics at the school level. Although ICC₂ was also reported for teacher subjective well-being, this variable was theoretically conceptualized as an individual-level outcome and therefore was not interpreted as a collective construct at the school level. This distinction was maintained to avoid conceptual conflation between individual psychological outcomes and shared organizational properties. The analyses were conducted within a multilevel mediation framework to account for the nested structure of teachers within schools and to reflect the conceptualization of school culture as a shared contextual characteristic. The proposed theoretical model corresponds to a 2–2–1 multilevel mediation structure, in which school culture (Level 2) influences teacher subjective well-being (Level 1) both directly and indirectly through school-level psychological empowerment [ 64 ]. In specifying the multilevel model, a clear distinction was made between the teacher level (within level) and the school level (between level). School culture was modeled exclusively at the school level, as it represents a shared organizational characteristic and was operationalized using cluster-level latent constructs. Psychological empowerment was modeled at both levels because it reflects both an individual psychological experience and a perception shared among teachers within the same school. Accordingly, individual teachers’ psychological empowerment scores were included at the within level, while school-level means were represented at the between level. Teacher subjective well-being was theoretically treated as an individual-level psychological outcome and modeled at the teacher level. However, acknowledging that teacher well-being exhibits meaningful between-school variability, its variance at the school level was also explicitly represented in the model. This modeling strategy allows the individual nature of teacher well-being to be preserved while simultaneously disentangling contextual effects attributable to the school environment. The hypothesized relationships among school culture, psychological empowerment, and teacher subjective well-being were tested using multilevel structural equation modeling (MSEM). Bayesian estimation was employed due to its advantages in multilevel mediation models, including more accurate reflection of parameter uncertainty, direct estimation of indirect effects, and the provision of credible intervals rather than reliance on large-sample normality assumptions [ 45 , 78 ]. To reduce the potential impact of common method bias, several procedural and statistical remedies were implemented. Respondents were assured of anonymity and confidentiality and informed that there were no right or wrong answers. In addition, different response formats (5-point, 7-point, and 4-point Likert scales) were used across the study instruments to minimize common scale properties. Furthermore, Harman’s single-factor test was conducted, indicating that a single factor accounted for 31.278% of the total variance, suggesting that common method bias was unlikely to pose a serious threat to the study findings. In the Bayesian estimation process, two Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) chains were used. Model convergence was evaluated using potential scale reduction (PSR) values, with PSR values below 1.05 indicating adequate convergence [ 58 , 74 ]. Model convergence was further supported by visual inspection of trace plots, which showed reduced variability and stable parameter trajectories as the number of iterations increased. The significance of direct and indirect effects was evaluated based on whether the Bayesian 95% credible intervals excluded zero. In line with the theoretical model, mediation was specified only at the school level, such that the indirect effect of school culture on teacher subjective well-being was tested through school-level psychological empowerment. A credible interval for the indirect effect that does not include zero was taken as evidence of a statistically credible mediation effect [ 33 ]. Finally, to assess the explanatory power of the model, R² values at both the teacher level and the school level were reported. These values indicate the proportion of variance in teacher subjective well-being and psychological empowerment explained by school culture and psychological empowerment at their respective levels. Results Preliminary Analyses Table 1 presents the means, standard deviations, correlations, and multicollinearity indicators for the variables included in the study. Table 1 Descriptive statistics, correlations, and multicollinearity diagnostics (N = 481) Variable Ort. SD 1 2 3 ICC 1 ICC 2 Tolerance VIF Teacher level (N = 481) 1. School Culture 4.06 0.67 1 .325 .820 .728 1.37 2. Psychological Empowerment 5.53 1.40 .521** 1 .233 .740 .728 1.37 3. Teacher Well-Being 3.37 0.82 .780** .490** 1 .166 .750 – – School level (n = 52) 1. School Culture 4.54 0.35 1 – – .841 1.19 2. Psychological Empowerment 5.59 0.82 .398** 1 – – .841 1.19 3. Teacher Well-Being 3.40 0.35 .496** .805** 1 – – – – Note. M = Mean; SD = Standard deviation. ICC = Interclass Corelation**p < .01. Table 1 presents descriptive statistics, correlations, intraclass correlation coefficients, and multicollinearity diagnostics at both the teacher and school levels. At the teacher level (N = 481), teachers reported moderately high perceptions of school culture (M = 4.06, SD = 0.67), psychological empowerment (M = 5.53, SD = 1.40), and teacher well-being (M = 3.37, SD = 0.82). Correlation analyses at this level revealed statistically significant and positive associations among all study variables. Specifically, school culture was strongly related to teacher well-being (r = .780, p < .01) and moderately related to psychological empowerment (r = .521, p < .01). In addition, psychological empowerment showed a moderate positive association with teacher well-being (r = .490, p < .01). Intraclass correlation coefficients were examined to assess the proportion of variance attributable to between-school differences and to justify the use of multilevel analysis. The ICC₁ estimates indicated that a meaningful proportion of variance was attributable to schools for school culture (ICC₁ = .325), psychological empowerment (ICC₁ = .233), and teacher well-being (ICC₁ = .166). Considering the average cluster size (k = 9.250), the corresponding ICC₂ values suggested high reliability of school-level aggregates for school culture (ICC₂ = .820) and psychological empowerment (ICC₂ = .740), as well as acceptable reliability for teacher well-being (ICC₂ = .750). At the school level (N = 52), aggregated scale scores indicated relatively high levels of school culture (M = 4.54, SD = 0.35), psychological empowerment (M = 5.59, SD = 0.82), and teacher well-being (M = 3.40, SD = 0.35). Correlation analyses at the school level showed that school culture was moderately associated with psychological empowerment (r = .398, p < .01) and teacher well-being (r = .496, p < .01). Moreover, psychological empowerment and teacher well-being exhibited a strong positive association (r = .805, p < .01), suggesting that schools characterized by higher collective empowerment tend to report higher overall levels of teacher well-being. Finally, multicollinearity diagnostics indicated no serious concerns at either level of analysis. Tolerance values (.728 at the teacher level and .841 at the school level) and variance inflation factor values (VIF = 1.37 at the teacher level and 1.19 at the school level) remained well within recommended thresholds. Taken together, these findings support the empirical distinctiveness of the study constructs and provide a robust justification for the subsequent multilevel structural equation modeling analyses. Multi-Level Analysis In the analytical process, the model was initially estimated using 5,000 iterations; however, at this stage, the potential scale reduction (PSR) values did not sufficiently approach the recommended threshold of 1.05. Therefore, the number of iterations was gradually increased, and the model was re-estimated using 30,000 iterations. After approximately 24,200 iterations, the PSR value decreased to 1.047, indicating that the model had achieved convergence. In addition, as the number of iterations increased, the variability observed in the trace plots decreased substantially, and the parameter estimates became more stable. Figure 2 presents the Bayesian multi-level model schematic. Table 2 presents the results of the Bayesian multilevel structural equation model examining the relationships among school culture, psychological empowerment, and teacher subjective well-being at both the teacher (within) and school (between) levels. Table 2 Bayesian multi-level SEM results Path β Posterior SD z %95 Credible Interval p R² Within (Individual level) PE → TSW 0.498 0.040 12.45 [0.416, 0.570] < .001 .248 Gender → TSW 0.003 0.041 0.07 [− 0.086, 0.099] .490 Teaching experience → TSW 0.041 0.042 0.97 [− 0.044, 0.119] .150 Between (School level) SC → PE 0.446 0.140 3.19 [0.138, 0.682] .003 .199 PE → TSW 0.731 0.136 5.38 [0.417, 0.940] < .001 SC → TSW 0.339 0.166 2.04 [0.010, 0.660] .022 Indirect Effect (SC → PE→ TSW) 0.326 0.048 6.79 [0.268, 0.381] < .001 Total Effect (SC → TSW) 0.665 0.067 9.92 [0.532, 0.798] < .001 .895 Within-level (Teacher level) effects At the teacher level, teachers’ individual perceptions of psychological empowerment had a strong and statistically significant effect on teacher subjective well-being (β = .498, 95% CI [.416, .570]). This result provides support for H3W, indicating that teachers who perceive more psychological empowerment than their colleagues within the same school report higher levels of subjective well-being. In contrast, neither gender (β = .003, 95% CI [− .086, .099]) nor teaching experience (β = .041, 95% CI [− .044, .119]) significantly predicted teacher well-being at the individual level. The within-level model explained 24.8% of the variance in teacher subjective well-being (R² = .248). Between-level (School level) effects At the school level, perceived school culture exerted a positive and statistically significant effect on psychological empowerment (β = .446, 95% CI [.138, .682]), supporting H2. This finding indicates that schools characterized by stronger shared cultural environments tend to exhibit higher collective levels of psychological empowerment among teachers. School culture accounted for 19.9% of the variance in psychological empowerment at the school level (R² = .199). Psychological empowerment, in turn, showed a strong positive effect on teacher subjective well-being at the school level (β = .731, 95% CI [.417, .940]), providing support for H3B. This result suggests that schools in which teachers collectively feel more empowered also report higher overall levels of teacher well-being. In addition, school culture had a direct effect on teacher subjective well-being at the school level (β = .339, 95% CI [.010, .660]). Although statistically significant, this effect was weaker than the indirect pathway operating through psychological empowerment, indicating partial support for H1. Mediation analysis Mediation analyses further demonstrated that psychological empowerment played a significant mediating role in the relationship between school culture and teacher subjective well-being at the school level. The indirect effect of school culture on teacher well-being through psychological empowerment was statistically credible (β = .326, 95% CI [.268, .381]), supporting H4. Moreover, the total effect of school culture on teacher subjective well-being was strong and significant (β = .665, 95% CI [.532, .798], p < .001), with the full model explaining 89.5% of the variance in teacher well-being at the school level (R² = .895). Discussion This study extends the literature by modeling the relationship between school culture and teachers’ subjective well-being within a 2–2–1 multilevel mediation framework, identifying school-level psychological empowerment as a key cross-level mechanism linking organizational context to individual well-being in a centralized education system. Using multilevel structural equation modeling, the findings demonstrate that school culture is positively associated with both teachers’ psychological empowerment and subjective well-being, and that psychological empowerment plays a significant mediating role in this relationship. These results underscore the importance of organizational conditions in shaping teachers’ psychological functioning and professional experiences. At both the individual and school levels, school culture was positively and significantly associated with teachers’ subjective well-being [ 35 ]. Teachers who perceived their schools as collaborative, supportive, and trust-based reported higher levels of well-being. This finding is consistent with prior research showing that positive school climates are associated with lower emotional exhaustion and higher job satisfaction and engagement [ 2 , 70 ]. School culture functions as a shared social context that shapes how teachers interpret their work experiences and sense of belonging. When schools promote collegial relationships, open communication, and shared responsibility, teachers are more likely to experience professional fulfillment and positive emotional functioning. A further key finding concerns the strong relationship between school culture and psychological empowerment. Schools characterized by trust, collaboration, and participatory decision-making were associated with higher collective empowerment perceptions among teachers. This result aligns with previous evidence suggesting that supportive organizational environments foster autonomy, competence, and professional influence [ 13 , 9 ]. The magnitude of this association indicates that psychological empowerment is not merely an individual attribute but is largely shaped by shared organizational norms and leadership practices. In contexts that encourage professional dialogue and participation, teachers are more likely to perceive their work as meaningful and impactful [ 51 ]. Psychological empowerment was also a strong predictor of teachers’ subjective well-being at both the individual and school levels. Teachers who perceived themselves as competent, autonomous, and influential reported higher levels of well-being. This finding is consistent with self-determination theory, which emphasizes the role of autonomy and competence in promoting psychological functioning [ 16 ]. Previous studies similarly indicate that empowered teachers experience greater job satisfaction, lower stress, and stronger professional commitment [ 43 , 28 ]. In this respect, empowerment emerges as a critical psychological resource supporting teachers’ capacity to manage professional demands and maintain positive emotional experiences. One of the central contributions of this study is the identification of psychological empowerment as a mediating mechanism linking school culture and teachers’ subjective well-being. The findings indicate that school culture influences well-being both directly and indirectly through empowerment. While the direct association remained significant, the indirect pathway suggests that collaborative and supportive school environments enhance teachers’ well-being primarily by strengthening perceptions of autonomy, competence, and impact. This pattern is consistent with social cognitive theory, which posits that environmental conditions shape beliefs that subsequently influence emotional outcomes [ 69 ]. Overall, the results emphasize that school culture represents a foundational organizational mechanism through which teachers’ psychological empowerment and well-being are shaped. In centralized education systems such as the KRG context, where structural autonomy is limited, school-level cultural conditions appear particularly salient. Even within hierarchical governance structures, participatory and supportive school cultures can enhance empowerment and well-being, highlighting the critical role of school leadership in shaping teachers’ professional experiences. Strengthening collaborative school cultures may therefore represent a viable strategy for promoting teacher well-being and sustaining effective school functioning. Limitations This study has various limitations. First, the convenience sampling and data gathered in Erbil city only restrict the extrapolation of the results to other parts of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Second, cross-sectional and relational study designs cannot be interpreted causally to suggest the relationships between school culture, psychological empowerment, and subjective well-being of teachers. Although convenience sampling is a non-probability method and may limit the generalizability of the findings, efforts were made to include teachers from different school levels (primary, middle, and high school) and from public institutions in order to enhance the diversity of the sample. Lastly, common method bias might have been caused by the use of self-reports, although attempts to minimize the effect of this factor were made. These limitations can be overcome in future studies through the use of longitudinal designs, larger and more varied sample sizes, and mixed-method designs. Conclusion This study highlights the central role of school culture in shaping teachers’ psychological empowerment and subjective well-being. The findings demonstrate that collaborative, supportive, and trust-based school cultures are positively associated with higher levels of teacher empowerment, which in turn enhances teachers’ well-being. Psychological empowerment was identified as a key mechanism through which school culture influences teachers’ professional experiences. These results underscore the importance of strengthening positive school cultures as a practical strategy for promoting teacher well-being and sustaining effective school functioning, particularly within centralized educational systems. Abbreviations TSWQ Teacher Subjective Well-Being Questionnaire ICC Intraclass Correlation Coefficient SEM Structural Equation Model Declarations Ethics Approval and Consent to Participate The study was approved by Fırat University Social and Human Sciences Research Ethics Committee (date: 04.03.2026, decision no: 2024-05). Additionally, written informed consent was obtained from all participants before data collection. Consent for Publication Not applicable Competing Interests The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest with any institution or person within the scope of the study. Authors’ Information Müslim ALANOĞLU, Fırat University, Education Faculty, Educational Sciences, Elazığ, Türkiye. [email protected] , https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1828-4593 Rebin Salih KHUDHUR, Faculty of Education, Fırat University, Elazığ, Türkiye. [email protected] , https://orcid.org/ 0009-0002-9232-4389 Zülfü DEMIRTAŞ, Faculty of Education, Fırat University, Elazığ, [email protected] , https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1072-5772 Funding This study was supported by the Scientific Research Projects Coordination Unit of Fırat University (FUBAP) under Project No. EF.26.11 Author Contribution Study management: MA; study design and conceptualization: MA, ZD, RSK; data collection: RSK; Data analysis: MA; validation of findings and interpretation of the results: ZD; Preparation of the manuscript draft: MA, ZD, RSK. All authors reviewed the results and approved the final version of the manuscript. Acknowledgements We would like to thank all teachers who contributed to the study as participants. 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Acad Manag Rev. 1990;15(4):666–81. 10.2307/258687 . Van de Schoot R, et al. Bayesian statistics and modelling. Psychol Methods. 2017;22(2):304–21. Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 11 May, 2026 Reviews received at journal 01 May, 2026 Reviews received at journal 20 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 15 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 14 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 09 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 09 Apr, 2026 Reviewers invited by journal 07 Apr, 2026 Editor invited by journal 10 Mar, 2026 Editor assigned by journal 09 Mar, 2026 Submission checks completed at journal 09 Mar, 2026 First submitted to journal 06 Mar, 2026 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-9054256","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":622237333,"identity":"5fbc11ab-0ccf-489f-a3fa-c56cfa42648c","order_by":0,"name":"Muslim ALANOGLU","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA90lEQVRIiWNgGAWjYFAC5gYQKcPA3vjgAEQkgZAWRrAWHgaewwZALQYQLQeI0iKRDFJOhBbd9oONnwsqankMbj5mPFxR84eBnz3HgPnjHtxazM4kNkvPOHOcx+B2MsPBM8cMGCR73hgwHHiGR8uBxAZp3rZjQC35Bw42sBkwGNzIAWrB4zKz8w+bf4O13DzMcLDhnwGDPUEtNxLbgLbU8BjcYGY42NgGtEWCoJaHbdY8Zw7wSJ4B+qWxz5hH4syzggNn8Dos+fBtnoo6Ob7jh5k/NnyTk+NvT974oAKPFig4DGfxgAjCGhgY6ohQMwpGwSgYBSMWAACUQFmR07AOwgAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==","orcid":"","institution":"Fırat University","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Muslim","middleName":"","lastName":"ALANOGLU","suffix":""},{"id":622237334,"identity":"bf74d461-1f68-48a6-bf1d-8d2581043712","order_by":1,"name":"Rebin Salih KHUDHUR","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Fırat University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Rebin","middleName":"Salih","lastName":"KHUDHUR","suffix":""},{"id":622237335,"identity":"31e85eb9-d271-4044-9dee-79723905507c","order_by":2,"name":"Zülfü DEMİRTAŞ","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Fırat University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Zülfü","middleName":"","lastName":"DEMİRTAŞ","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2026-03-06 23:08:01","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9054256/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9054256/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":106903871,"identity":"a9d792b2-611b-4a73-9b35-5925b9164926","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-04-14 15:14:38","extension":"png","order_by":1,"title":"Figure 1","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":41334,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eProposed model\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"1.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-9054256/v1/eb50986717755e7c74550570.png"},{"id":106903872,"identity":"29860fd3-7e54-4aef-921c-bd31c227b245","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-04-14 15:14:38","extension":"png","order_by":2,"title":"Figure 2","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":40205,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eBayesian multi-level model\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"2.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-9054256/v1/c3a7fa3ba7bb1d22329dcbe0.png"},{"id":106961259,"identity":"666ccd45-2aa2-4916-b21e-01791374791c","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-04-15 09:24:52","extension":"pdf","order_by":0,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":996966,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-9054256/v1/c34e113d-8918-44df-a3b1-db9259500e20.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Linking School Culture to Teachers’ Psychological Empowerment and Subjective Well-Being: A Multilevel Mediation Study","fulltext":[{"header":"Introduction","content":"\u003cp\u003eThe educational systems rely on teachers to be successful, and their Subjective Well-Being has become the topic of increasing concern among researchers and policymakers because of its systematic association with the quality of instruction, student outcomes, and school functioning [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e]. Teacher Subjective Well-Being is the meaning of emotional, psychological, and professional functioning of the teachers and is generally accepted as a multidimensional construct that describes the experiences and perceptions of the teachers concerning their professional life [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e]. Instead of being defined by personal traits, teachers' subjective well-being is perceived as being institutionalized in organizational and situational circumstances that exist in schools. School culture takes one of the leading positions among these conditions as the common organizational context by means of which the experiences, attitudes, and behaviors of teachers are placed [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e5\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e6\u003c/span\u003e]. According to the previous literature, school cultures, which involve trust and collaboration, as well as professional support, have a positive relationship with teacher commitment, job satisfaction, and organizational effectiveness [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e7\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e8\u003c/span\u003e].\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eOn the other hand, disjointed or out-of-sync school cultures are often linked to increased stress, emotional burnout, and less professional involvement by teachers [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e9\u003c/span\u003e]. The school culture, therefore, in this regard, is a relevant social and psychological background in which the subjective well-being of teachers is being formed and experienced instead of being directly defined. Psychological empowerment is one of the mechanisms that are regularly mentioned in the literature as the means of relating school culture to teacher outcomes. Psychologically empowered educators see their work as purposeful, competent in their professional activities, discriminating in their professional choices, and feel that their efforts can influence the processes in the schools [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e10\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e11\u003c/span\u003e]. Empirical research indicates that psychological empowerment is positively linked with job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and reduced burnout rates among the teachers [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e10\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e18\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e21\u003c/span\u003e]\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe school cultures that focus on professional dialogue and shared sense of responsibility are especially related to mutual perceptions of agency and professional influence among teachers [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e12\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e14\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e49\u003c/span\u003e]. Conversely, hierarchical and control-oriented cultures are associated with low levels of perception of autonomy, competence, and power [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e13\u003c/span\u003e]. Although much has been done in terms of studying the school culture and psychological empowerment individually, there is a lack of empirical studies combining school culture, psychological empowerment, and teacher subjective well-being in a single multilevel model. The current literature is mainly divided into studies that concentrate on the school climate and job satisfaction [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e15\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e16\u003c/span\u003e] or on the studies that concentrate on the psychological empowerment and organizational commitment [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e17\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e18\u003c/span\u003e], which offer limited empirical evidence around the relationship between psychological empowerment and the association between school culture and teacher subjective well-being. Knowledge of such relational pathways is valuable in guiding leadership practices and organizational policies that can be used to maintain a healthy, productive teaching workforce.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eBased on the instruction on the relevance of the multilevel analyses in the study of relations between organizational settings and employee performance [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e19\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e22\u003c/span\u003e], the study investigates the multilevel correlation between school culture, psychological empowerment, and teacher subjective well-being. Particularly, it examines (a) the relationship between school culture and teachers’ subjective well-being, (b) the relationship between school culture and psychological empowerment of schools, and (c) the statistical association between school culture and teacher subjective well-being.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Literature Review","content":"\u003ch2\u003eSchool Culture\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eDue to its significance, the concept of school culture has been extensively examined in educational research and practice [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e27\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e28\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e29\u003c/span\u003e]. It was assumed that school culture is one of the most powerful organizational variables because it is correlated with the working conditions of teachers, with the establishment of norms of interaction, leadership styles, and demands towards professionalism [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e34\u003c/span\u003e]. Positive school cultures are often correlated with increased participation in collegial support, collective responsibility, and professional development opportunities, which, in turn, are related to teacher motivation and engagement [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e27\u003c/span\u003e]. The given cultural conditions are also associated with the institutional efficacy and personal and professional growth of teachers [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e30\u003c/span\u003e]. School culture has been widely understood to mean the common beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors that define a school and determine the interactions and experiences of the members of the school [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e31\u003c/span\u003e].\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe concept of school culture has many definitions depending on the social and organizational settings [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e28\u003c/span\u003e], but the general concept of school culture is the agreed set of values, beliefs, and practices that determine the behavior of people in the school. [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e32\u003c/span\u003e] conceptualized school culture as the patterns of meanings and traditions that tend to guide the school functioning and the way teachers view their professional roles. Similarly, [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e33\u003c/span\u003e] also stressed that school culture comprises group norms and interpersonal relations that influence how teachers perceive their workplace. These cultural factors are directly connected to the level to which teachers are supported, trusted, and included in decision-making processes and the interpretation of the institutional expectations. School culture may thus be seen as a systemic and relational structure that assists the teachers to make sense of their work experiences as well as their place within the school structure.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eSchool Context in the Kurdistan Region Government of Iraq (KRG)\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe given study is located in the educational background of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) of Iraq and dwells upon the connection between the organizational status of schools and the psychological empowerment and subjective well-being of the teachers. The KRG education system is highly centralized in its administration in terms of which curriculum design, leadership appointments, and major administrative decisions are mostly under the control of the Ministry of Education, but schools are left to have some autonomy. Past studies have shown that these centralized systems of governance are linked to the practices of hierarchical decision-making and poor participation of teachers at the school level [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e20\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e23\u003c/span\u003e] Whereas centralized systems could guarantee uniformity and standardization in administration, empirical investigations propose that less school autonomy and bureaucratic approach tend to be associated with weaker school culture and decreased teacher motivation [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e24\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e25\u003c/span\u003e]\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eEmpirical research implemented in the KRG setting demonstrates the relevance of collegial support, cooperation, and professional growth to the establishment of positive school cultures and the improvement of the subjective well-being of teachers. There is a greater degree of job satisfaction and commitment to the organization in the school conditions that encourage the use of recognition, cooperation, and shared responsibility. On the other hand, stress and emotional burnout are often related to low administrative support and workloads, which highlights the importance of school cultures based on empowerment and well-being [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e26\u003c/span\u003e]. In this context, the school culture offers a critical analytical perspective of how the common organizational norms, relations, and values pertain to the professional experiences of teachers. Studies have indicated that a positively related school culture that is based on collaboration and trust is linked to shared psychological empowerment, especially where the education system does not have centralized power and power distance is high [\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e14\u003c/span\u003e]. In that regard, the review of school culture within the KRG framework can be useful in terms of understanding the relationships between the organizational conditions of the school-level and the outcomes of empowerment and individual well-being in teachers.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec3\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec4\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003ePsychological Empowerment\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe phenomenon of psychological empowerment has received significant academic and managerial attention because of its established relevance to organizational performance and employee development [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR18\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e18\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR34\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e34\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR35\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e35\u003c/span\u003e]. Empowerment is widely described as a strategic approach adopted by organizations to support higher levels of autonomy and responsibility among employees in their work roles [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR37\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e37\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR36\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e36\u003c/span\u003e]. Employees who report higher levels of empowerment tend to demonstrate greater creativity, adaptability to organizational change, and higher levels of job performance [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR38\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e38\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR39\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e39\u003c/span\u003e]. The implications of these outcomes are associated not only with organizational effectiveness but also with the personal and professional development of teachers [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR40\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e40\u003c/span\u003e].\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe literature further suggests that psychological empowerment does not emerge in isolation; rather, it is embedded within the social and cultural structures of schools. Conducive school climates that foster participation, shared values, and collaborative work relationships provide environments in which teachers are more likely to experience higher levels of empowerment [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR29\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e29\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR41\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e41\u003c/span\u003e]. In most conceptualizations, psychological empowerment is framed as a motivational construct consisting of the dimensions of meaning, competence, self-determination, and impact [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR43\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e43\u003c/span\u003e]. Consistent with this perspective, [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR42\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e42\u003c/span\u003e] conceptualized psychological empowerment as a collection of work-related beliefs shaped by the organizational environment, reflecting how individuals orient themselves toward their job roles.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003ePsychological empowerment has been defined in various ways across social and organizational contexts [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR44\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e44\u003c/span\u003e]. Building on these earlier formulations, it is most commonly theorized in motivational terms and conceptualized through a set of cognitive dimensions. Thomas and Velthouse [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR77\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e77\u003c/span\u003e] identified four core elements of empowerment\u0026mdash;meaning, competence, self-determination, and impact\u0026mdash;which reflect individuals\u0026rsquo; cognitive appraisals of their work roles. These dimensions are conceptually aligned with later empowerment frameworks, indicating the extent to which employees perceive their work as purposeful, feel capable of fulfilling job requirements, experience autonomy in decision-making processes, and believe that they can exert influence within the organization. Accordingly, psychological empowerment can be understood as a subjective evaluation of employees' perceived autonomy, competence, and capacity to influence their work environment in meaningful ways.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eSubjective Well-Being\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe quality of life and functioning at work are critical dimensions from the perspective of individuals\u0026rsquo; overall quality of life and their performance in occupational settings [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR19\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e19\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR20\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e20\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR46\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e46\u003c/span\u003e]. The topic of subjective well-being has thus gained supplementary and more attention in psychology and education studies. Subjective well-being has been argued to be a relevant measure of the way people evaluate and experience their working lives, which can also be greatly applied in the education field.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIncreased levels of subjective well-being are linked to increased job satisfaction, motivation, and adaptive functionality, whereas low levels of subjective well-being are connected to stress and emotional strain [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR47\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e47\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR48\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e48\u003c/span\u003e]. In this regard, the subjective well-being of teachers is considered to be one of the keys to maintaining a positive teaching process and long-term professional involvement [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR51\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e51\u003c/span\u003e]. The concept of teacher subjective well-being is associated with positive psychological functioning at the workplace, especially in the sense of instructional efficacy and the sense of connectedness and belonging of teachers to a school setting [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR50\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e50\u003c/span\u003e]. Subjective well-being can be a varying factor based on the personal and organizational situations, but it is usually described as a multidimensional process that includes both cognitive and affective elements [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR48\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e48\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR52\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e52\u003c/span\u003e]. Subjective well-being is the perceptions and ratings of the lives of individuals themselves, including their general life satisfaction and the proportion between positive and negative affect. This sight asserts that objective conditions are not the only determinants of subjective well-being, but also the perceptions and interpretations people have of their lived experiences.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn the academic contexts, these dimensions represent how well the teachers are content with their vocation and have positive emotions, including enthusiasm and fulfillment, in their day-to-day activity, instead of negative ones, including anxiety and frustration. According to this interpretation, the subjective well-being of the teachers can be viewed as a subjective assessment of the quality of their professional life and their feelings in the school environment.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eConceptual Framework and Hypotheses\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe conceptual framework of this research is grounded in theories of school culture and positive organizational scholarship, which emphasize the role of shared norms, values, and social relationships in shaping educational processes and outcomes [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR53\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e53\u003c/span\u003e]. The school culture can be defined as a set of common values, beliefs, norms, and practices that guide interactions and decision-making processes within the school community. Trust, collaboration, open communication, and shared responsibility are widely recognized as core features of positive school cultures [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR54\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e54\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR55\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e55\u003c/span\u003e]\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eSuch cultural conditions are closely associated with teachers\u0026rsquo; psychological empowerment. Participation, collegiality, and mutual respect within school environments are associated with stronger perceptions of autonomy, competence, and professional influence among teachers [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR56\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e56\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR57\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e57\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR58\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e58\u003c/span\u003e]. Similarly, cultures characterized by support and trust are related to teachers\u0026rsquo; sense of professional agency and perceived control over instructional and organizational processes [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR59\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e59\u003c/span\u003e]. This relationship is particularly salient in education systems with hierarchical organizational structures, where collaborative and participatory school cultures may function as relational contexts that balance centralized control and facilitate teacher participation in decision-making [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR60\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e60\u003c/span\u003e]\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eTeachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being is likewise systematically associated with school culture. Favorable and team-oriented school cultures are linked to lower levels of professional stress and emotional exhaustion and higher levels of job satisfaction and organizational commitment [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR7\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e7\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR61\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e61\u003c/span\u003e]. Emotionally safe and trust-based environments are associated with teachers\u0026rsquo; capacity to manage work-related demands more effectively (Cohen et al., 2009). Within the Job Demands\u0026ndash;Resources framework, job resources\u0026mdash;such as supportive leadership and positive collegial relationships\u0026mdash;are theorized to promote employees\u0026rsquo; well-being and motivation [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR8\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e8\u003c/span\u003e]. In school settings, a positive school culture and school climate therefore function as key organizational resources that are associated with enhanced levels of teachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR62\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e62\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR63\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e63\u003c/span\u003e].\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn addition, psychological empowerment is conceptualized as a central mechanism through which school culture is related to teachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being. In school cultures characterized by autonomy, recognition, and professional collaboration, teachers are more likely to report higher levels of intrinsic motivation and emotional resilience, which are associated with elevated levels of subjective well-being [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR17\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e17\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR64\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e64\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR65\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e65\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR66\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e66\u003c/span\u003e]. From this perspective, psychological empowerment is expected to operate as a mediating construct linking school culture and teachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being. Based on this theoretical and empirical grounding, the following hypotheses are proposed.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eSchool culture is a contextual process through which the work environment is related to the psychological and emotional functioning of teachers. The collective norms, leadership practices, and interpersonal relationships embedded in school culture are systematically associated with how teachers perceive their workplace conditions, evaluate their professional identities, and regulate their work-related emotions. Social and emotional resources provided through supportive leadership, collegial trust, and collaborative practices are linked to lower levels of stress and more positive affective experiences, which in turn are associated with higher levels of teachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being. [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR63\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e63\u003c/span\u003e]\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eEmpirical research provides consistent support for this relational mechanism. Thien and Lee [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR76\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e76\u003c/span\u003e] demonstrated that leadership practices and collaborative norms within school culture were significantly associated with teachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being. Similarly, [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR67\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e67\u003c/span\u003e] found that positive school climate was related to lower emotional exhaustion and higher levels of workplace well-being among teachers. Together, these findings suggest that school culture is systematically related to teachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being by shaping their psychological and emotional experiences within the work environment, supporting a positive association between school culture and teacher subjective well-being.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cstrong\u003eH1\u003c/strong\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cem\u003eTeachers\u0026rsquo; individual perceptions of school culture are positively associated with their subjective well-being at the individual (within) level.\u003c/em\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003ePsychological empowerment is a motivational construct that is expressed through four core cognitions: meaning, competence, self-determination, and impact [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR43\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e43\u003c/span\u003e]. Empowered teachers tend to value their work as meaningful, perceive themselves as competent in their profession, experience autonomy in instructional practices, and believe that their efforts can make a meaningful contribution to school functioning. Although these perceptions are experienced by individual teachers, psychological empowerment is closely embedded within the organizational context in which teachers work.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eSchool culture constitutes a central organizational context that is systematically associated with teachers\u0026rsquo; psychological empowerment. School cultures characterized by shared leadership, trust, collaboration, and professional autonomy are associated with greater teacher involvement in decision-making processes and higher levels of initiative [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR9\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e9\u003c/span\u003e]. From the perspective of social cognitive theory, positive and supportive environments are related to enhanced self-efficacy and perceived control, which represent fundamental components of psychological empowerment [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR69\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e69\u003c/span\u003e].\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eEmpirical research provides consistent evidence for the association between school culture and teacher empowerment. In a structural equation modeling study, [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR55\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e55\u003c/span\u003e] found that school culture was significantly associated with psychological empowerment among teachers. Similarly, [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR70\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e70\u003c/span\u003e] reported that school cultures characterized by empowerment were linked to higher levels of professional agency and responsibility among teachers. Taken together, these findings indicate that teachers are more likely to experience higher levels of psychological empowerment in schools where collaborative norms, shared values, and supportive leadership practices are widely established.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cstrong\u003eH2\u003c/strong\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cem\u003eSchool-level school culture is positively associated with school-level psychological empowerment.\u003c/em\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAlthough psychological empowerment is experienced by individuals, it may also emerge as a collective perception at the organizational level, particularly in schools where teachers collaborate closely and where leadership practices and school culture shape shared experiences. Psychological empowerment is commonly conceptualized through the dimensions of meaning, competence, self-determination, and impact [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR43\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e43\u003c/span\u003e]. Collective perceptions of empowerment may develop through ongoing social interaction and shared experiences within work groups, through which teachers gradually arrive at similar beliefs regarding their autonomy, influence, and professional value within the school [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR67\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e67\u003c/span\u003e].\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eA growing body of research indicates that psychological empowerment is positively associated with employees\u0026rsquo; well-being and positive affect in the workplace [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR67\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e67\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR55\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e55\u003c/span\u003e]. In educational settings, empowered teachers have been found to report higher levels of job satisfaction, professional fulfillment, and emotional well-being [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR13\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e13\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR68\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e68\u003c/span\u003e]. School-level psychological empowerment represents a shared motivational climate that is closely linked to individual empowerment experiences [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR71\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e71\u003c/span\u003e]. From a multilevel perspective, this suggests that collective empowerment within a school is systematically related to individual teachers\u0026rsquo; well-being outcomes. Accordingly, when teachers within a school share a high level of psychological empowerment, they are more likely to report higher levels of subjective well-being.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cstrong\u003eH3B\u003c/strong\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cem\u003eSchool-level psychological empowerment is positively associated with teachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being at the individual (within) level.\u003c/em\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eSuch positive psychological outcomes as job satisfaction, work engagement, and emotional subjective well-being are closely associated with psychological empowerment. Teachers who report higher levels of psychological empowerment tend to perceive their work as meaningful, feel competent in performing their professional tasks, and experience a greater sense of autonomy, which is associated with higher motivation and lower levels of work-related stress [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR73\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e73\u003c/span\u003e].\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThis relationship can be explained through self-determination theory [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR16\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e16\u003c/span\u003e], which posits that the fulfillment of basic psychological needs\u0026mdash;namely autonomy, competence, and relatedness\u0026mdash;is associated with enhanced levels of subjective well-being. These needs are reflected and supported within the work context through psychological empowerment, as empowerment captures employees\u0026rsquo; perceptions of autonomy, competence, and meaningful contribution. Consequently, empowered teachers are more likely to experience professional enrichment and demonstrate greater resilience to work-related stressors.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eEmpirical evidence consistently supports the positive association between psychological empowerment and subjective well-being. According to [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR12\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e12\u003c/span\u003e], psychological empowerment was significantly associated with teachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being. Similarly, [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR43\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e43\u003c/span\u003e] found that teachers\u0026rsquo; perceptions of autonomy and competence were negatively associated with emotional exhaustion and positively associated with job satisfaction and work engagement. Taken together, these findings indicate that higher levels of individual psychological empowerment are systematically related to more positive psychological functioning and greater well-being among teachers.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cstrong\u003eH3W\u003c/strong\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cem\u003eTeachers\u0026rsquo; individual psychological empowerment is positively associated with their subjective well-being at the individual (within) level.\u003c/em\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eA mediating perspective suggests that the association between school culture and teachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being operates indirectly through psychological empowerment. Stated differently, school cultures characterized by supportive and collaborative features are systematically associated with higher levels of psychological empowerment, which in turn are related to teachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThis relational process is consistent with social cognitive theory, which posits that environmental conditions shape individuals\u0026rsquo; cognitive beliefs, and these beliefs are subsequently associated with emotional and behavioral outcomes [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR69\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e69\u003c/span\u003e]. From this perspective, school culture provides a shared contextual environment that is closely linked to teachers\u0026rsquo; collective empowerment beliefs, which are in turn associated with individual-level well-being outcomes.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe individual links required for such a mediating relationship are supported by empirical evidence. Psychological empowerment is systematically associated with school culture [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR75\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e75\u003c/span\u003e], and teachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being is positively associated with psychological empowerment [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR44\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e44\u003c/span\u003e]. Although direct tests of this specific mediation model in educational settings remain limited, evidence from organizational research demonstrates similar indirect processes, in which empowerment functions as a mediating mechanism linking organizational conditions to employee well-being [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR55\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e55\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR67\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e67\u003c/span\u003e].\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cstrong\u003eH4\u003c/strong\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cem\u003eSchool-level psychological empowerment mediates the relationship between school-level school culture and teachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being at the individual level.\u003c/em\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eBased on the preceding theoretical framework, Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e presents the proposed multilevel model linking school culture, psychological empowerment, and teachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being. In the model, school culture and psychological empowerment are specified at the school level (between-level), whereas teachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being is examined at the individual level (within-level), allowing both direct and indirect cross-level associations to be tested.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec8\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003eMethod\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe research design that was used in this study was a cross-sectional survey and a quantitative study approach. The primary methodology used was structural equation modeling (SEM). SEM is a multivariate statistical technique that allows investigating complicated associations of both observed variables and unobservable constructs in a theoretically defined model. [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR73\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e73\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR75\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e75\u003c/span\u003e]. SEM enables the researcher to test theory-based hypotheses by estimating many dependence relationships simultaneously in a flexible and comprehensive way [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR45\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e45\u003c/span\u003e].\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eSampling and Participants\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe study sample consisted of 481 teachers working in public schools in Erbil city, Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRG) during the 2025\u0026ndash;2026 academic year. The participating teachers were drawn from 52 schools, representing different school types and educational levels. Participants were selected using a convenience sampling technique due to practical considerations related to access to schools, time constraints, and financial limitations.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eData were collected using an online questionnaire administered through Google Forms. School principals were contacted and informed about the purpose of the study, and permission was obtained before data collection. The survey link was distributed to teachers through school principals and professional communication channels. Participation was voluntary and anonymous.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe final sample consisted of 481 teachers from 52 public schools. Of the participants, 287 (59.7%) were female, and 194 (40.3%) were male. Regarding school level, 222 teachers (46.2%) were employed in primary schools, 143 (29.7%) in middle schools, and 116 (24.1%) in high schools. The number of participating teachers per school ranged from 7 to 13, with an average of 9.25 teachers per school. Given that there are 2,492 public schools in Erbil city, the online questionnaire (Google Forms) was distributed to 72 schools through school principals, and data collection was concluded after a one-month administration period, yielding the present sample.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eIndependent variable\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSchool culture was assessed using the 17-item \u003cem\u003eSchool Culture Survey\u003c/em\u003e originally developed by Wagner [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR30\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e30\u003c/span\u003e] and subsequently employed in international school improvement research, including applications reported by GLISI [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR23\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e23\u003c/span\u003e]. The scale captures shared norms, values, and professional practices within schools across the dimensions of professional collaboration, affiliative collegiality, and collective self-determination/efficacy [77 78]. Responses were recorded on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (\u003cem\u003eNever\u003c/em\u003e) to 5 (\u003cem\u003eAlways or Almost Always\u003c/em\u003e), with higher scores indicating more positive perceptions of school culture.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eMultilevel Confirmatory Factor Analysis (MCFA) was conducted to examine the factorial validity of the school culture construct at both the teacher (within) and school (between) levels. The results indicated that the measurement model demonstrated an acceptable overall fit to the data (χ\u0026sup2;/df\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;3.28; RMSEA = .069; CFI = .913; TLI = .900; SRMR_WITHIN = .077; SRMR_BETWEEN = .059). All factor loadings were statistically significant at both levels (p \u0026lt; .001), with standardized loadings ranging from .629 to .821 at the within level and from .977 to 1.000 at the between level, indicating strong item\u0026ndash;factor relationships and supporting the conceptualization of school culture as a shared contextual construct.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eConvergent validity and reliability were further supported by the Average Variance Extracted (AVE) and Composite Reliability (CR) values. At the teacher level, AVE and CR values were .516 and .947, respectively, exceeding recommended thresholds. At the school level, AVE and CR values were exceptionally high (AVE = .987; CR = .999), indicating that aggregated school culture scores reliably represent collective perceptions at the school level. Internal consistency reliability was also examined using Cronbach\u0026rsquo;s alpha and McDonald\u0026rsquo;s omega coefficients. The results showed very high internal consistency for the school culture scale (α\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.967; ω\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.967), providing further evidence of the reliability of the instrument.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec11\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003eMediation variable\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003ePsychological empowerment was measured using the 12-item \u003cem\u003ePsychological Empowerment Instrument\u003c/em\u003e originally developed by Spreitzer [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR43\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e43\u003c/span\u003e]. The instrument includes four dimensions with three items each: meaning, competence, self-determination, and impact [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR28\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e28\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR67\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e67\u003c/span\u003e]. Items were rated on a 7-point Likert scale ranging from \u003cem\u003every strongly disagree\u003c/em\u003e to \u003cem\u003every strongly agree\u003c/em\u003e, with higher scores indicating higher psychological empowerment.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eMultilevel Confirmatory Factor Analysis (MCFA) was conducted to evaluate the measurement model across teacher (within) and school (between) levels. Overall fit indices indicated acceptable fit at the within level and mixed fit at the between level (χ\u0026sup2;/df\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;3.67; RMSEA = .074; CFI = .956; TLI = .943; SRMR_WITHIN = .082; SRMR_BETWEEN = .076). All standardized factor loadings were statistically significant (p \u0026lt; .001), ranging from .758 to .850 at the within level and from .972 to .996 at the between level, indicating strong indicator\u0026ndash;factor relations across dimensions.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eConvergent validity and reliability were supported by AVE and CR estimates derived from standardized loadings (averaged across the four first-order dimensions). At the within level, AVE and CR values were AVE_WITHIN = .628 and CR_WITHIN = .835, respectively, exceeding recommended thresholds. At the between-level, AVE and CR values were exceptionally high (AVE_BETWEEN = .989; CR_BETWEEN = .996), consistent with psychological empowerment functioning as a highly shared construct at the school level. Internal consistency was also very high (α\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.975; ω\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.975).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec12\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003eDependent variable\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eTeacher subjective well-being was assessed using the Teacher Subjective Well-Being Questionnaire (TSWQ) developed by Renshaw et al. [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR50\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e50\u003c/span\u003e]. The scale consists of eight items representing two dimensions: teaching efficacy and school connectedness, capturing teachers\u0026rsquo; positive psychological functioning and their perceptions of effectiveness and belonging within the school context [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR29\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e29\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR50\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e50\u003c/span\u003e]. Responses were recorded on a 4-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (\u003cem\u003eAlmost never\u003c/em\u003e) to 4 (\u003cem\u003eAlmost always\u003c/em\u003e), with higher scores indicating higher levels of teacher well-being.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eMultilevel Confirmatory Factor Analysis (MCFA) was conducted to examine the factorial validity of the TSWQ at both the teacher (within) and school (between) levels. The results indicated a good overall fit to the data (χ\u0026sup2;/df\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;2.06; RMSEA = .047; CFI = .984; TLI = .976; SRMR_WITHIN = .028; SRMR_BETWEEN = .024). At the within level, standardized factor loadings ranged from .675 to .830 for the two first-order factors, indicating moderate to strong relationships between the observed indicators and their respective latent dimensions. At the between-level, standardized factor loadings were uniformly high, ranging from .967 to .997, suggesting that teacher subjective well-being functions as a highly shared construct across schools. Internal consistency reliability was examined using Cronbach\u0026rsquo;s alpha and McDonald\u0026rsquo;s omega coefficients. Both coefficients indicated high internal consistency for the TSWQ (α\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.934; ω\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.934), providing strong evidence for the reliability of the scale in the present sample.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn the analysis we performed, gender and teaching experience as control variables, the years of experience (seniority) of the teachers varied between 3 and 17 years, with an average of 8.78 (SD\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;3.17) years, and finally, the gender of the teachers was coded 0\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;female and 1\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;male.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec13\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003eData Analysis\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eData analyses were conducted using Mplus (version 8.11) [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR56\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e56\u003c/span\u003e]. Before the main analyses, the dataset was screened for missing data and outliers. Subsequently, descriptive statistics, including arithmetic means and standard deviations, as well as Pearson product\u0026ndash;moment correlation coefficients, were computed for all study variables. The proposed analytical framework corresponds to a 2\u0026ndash;2\u0026ndash;1 multilevel mediation model, where school-level school culture predicts individual-level teacher subjective well-being both directly and indirectly through school-level psychological empowerment, consistent with the recommendations of [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR64\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e64\u003c/span\u003e]\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe internal consistency reliability of the measurement instruments was evaluated using Cronbach\u0026rsquo;s alpha and McDonald\u0026rsquo;s omega, with values of .70 or higher considered acceptable. To assess the potential presence of multicollinearity among the variables, correlation coefficients, tolerance values, and variance inflation factor (VIF) values were examined. Consistent with established guidelines, VIF values below 5 and tolerance values above .20 were taken to indicate the absence of serious multicollinearity problems [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR31\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e31\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR45\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e45\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR54\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e54\u003c/span\u003e]. The results indicated that multicollinearity did not pose a concern for the subsequent analyses.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eTo determine whether a multilevel analytical approach was warranted, intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC₁) were calculated for school culture, psychological empowerment, and teacher subjective well-being. The ICC₁ values for all three variables exceeded the .05 threshold, indicating that a meaningful proportion of variance was attributable to between-school differences rather than solely to individual-level variation. These findings justified the use of a multilevel modeling framework [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR45\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e45\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR52\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e52\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR71\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e71\u003c/span\u003e]. To further evaluate the reliability of school-level aggregated scores, ICC₂ coefficients were calculated. ICC₂ values exceeding .70 for school culture and psychological empowerment indicated that these constructs could be reliably interpreted as shared, collective characteristics at the school level. Although ICC₂ was also reported for teacher subjective well-being, this variable was theoretically conceptualized as an individual-level outcome and therefore was not interpreted as a collective construct at the school level. This distinction was maintained to avoid conceptual conflation between individual psychological outcomes and shared organizational properties.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe analyses were conducted within a multilevel mediation framework to account for the nested structure of teachers within schools and to reflect the conceptualization of school culture as a shared contextual characteristic. The proposed theoretical model corresponds to a 2\u0026ndash;2\u0026ndash;1 multilevel mediation structure, in which school culture (Level 2) influences teacher subjective well-being (Level 1) both directly and indirectly through school-level psychological empowerment [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR64\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e64\u003c/span\u003e].\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn specifying the multilevel model, a clear distinction was made between the teacher level (within level) and the school level (between level). School culture was modeled exclusively at the school level, as it represents a shared organizational characteristic and was operationalized using cluster-level latent constructs. Psychological empowerment was modeled at both levels because it reflects both an individual psychological experience and a perception shared among teachers within the same school. Accordingly, individual teachers\u0026rsquo; psychological empowerment scores were included at the within level, while school-level means were represented at the between level.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eTeacher subjective well-being was theoretically treated as an individual-level psychological outcome and modeled at the teacher level. However, acknowledging that teacher well-being exhibits meaningful between-school variability, its variance at the school level was also explicitly represented in the model. This modeling strategy allows the individual nature of teacher well-being to be preserved while simultaneously disentangling contextual effects attributable to the school environment.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe hypothesized relationships among school culture, psychological empowerment, and teacher subjective well-being were tested using multilevel structural equation modeling (MSEM). Bayesian estimation was employed due to its advantages in multilevel mediation models, including more accurate reflection of parameter uncertainty, direct estimation of indirect effects, and the provision of credible intervals rather than reliance on large-sample normality assumptions [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR45\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e45\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR78\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e78\u003c/span\u003e].\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eTo reduce the potential impact of common method bias, several procedural and statistical remedies were implemented. Respondents were assured of anonymity and confidentiality and informed that there were no right or wrong answers. In addition, different response formats (5-point, 7-point, and 4-point Likert scales) were used across the study instruments to minimize common scale properties. Furthermore, Harman\u0026rsquo;s single-factor test was conducted, indicating that a single factor accounted for 31.278% of the total variance, suggesting that common method bias was unlikely to pose a serious threat to the study findings.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn the Bayesian estimation process, two Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) chains were used. Model convergence was evaluated using potential scale reduction (PSR) values, with PSR values below 1.05 indicating adequate convergence [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR58\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e58\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR74\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e74\u003c/span\u003e]. Model convergence was further supported by visual inspection of trace plots, which showed reduced variability and stable parameter trajectories as the number of iterations increased.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe significance of direct and indirect effects was evaluated based on whether the Bayesian 95% credible intervals excluded zero. In line with the theoretical model, mediation was specified only at the school level, such that the indirect effect of school culture on teacher subjective well-being was tested through school-level psychological empowerment. A credible interval for the indirect effect that does not include zero was taken as evidence of a statistically credible mediation effect [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR33\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e33\u003c/span\u003e].\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eFinally, to assess the explanatory power of the model, R\u0026sup2; values at both the teacher level and the school level were reported. These values indicate the proportion of variance in teacher subjective well-being and psychological empowerment explained by school culture and psychological empowerment at their respective levels.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"Results","content":"\u003cdiv id=\"Sec15\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003ePreliminary Analyses\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e presents the means, standard deviations, correlations, and multicollinearity indicators for the variables included in the study.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab1\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 1\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eDescriptive statistics, correlations, and multicollinearity diagnostics (N\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;481)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"10\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c8\" colnum=\"8\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c9\" colnum=\"9\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c10\" colnum=\"10\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eVariable\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eOrt.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSD\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eICC\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eICC\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTolerance\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eVIF\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTeacher level (N\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;481)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1. School Culture\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.06\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.67\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.325\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.820\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.728\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.37\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2. Psychological Empowerment\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.53\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.40\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.521**\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.233\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.740\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.728\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.37\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3. Teacher Well-Being\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.37\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.82\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.780**\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.490**\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.166\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.750\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026ndash;\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026ndash;\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eSchool level (n\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;52)\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1. School Culture\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.54\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.35\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026ndash;\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026ndash;\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.841\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.19\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2. Psychological Empowerment\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.59\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.82\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.398**\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026ndash;\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026ndash;\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.841\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.19\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3. Teacher Well-Being\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.40\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.35\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.496**\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.805**\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026ndash;\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026ndash;\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026ndash;\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026ndash;\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003ctfoot\u003e \u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"10\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eNote.\u003c/b\u003e M\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;Mean; SD\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;Standard deviation. ICC\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;Interclass Corelation**p \u0026lt; .01.\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tfoot\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e presents descriptive statistics, correlations, intraclass correlation coefficients, and multicollinearity diagnostics at both the teacher and school levels. At the teacher level (N\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;481), teachers reported moderately high perceptions of school culture (M\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;4.06, SD\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.67), psychological empowerment (M\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;5.53, SD\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;1.40), and teacher well-being (M\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;3.37, SD\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.82). Correlation analyses at this level revealed statistically significant and positive associations among all study variables. Specifically, school culture was strongly related to teacher well-being (r = .780, p \u0026lt; .01) and moderately related to psychological empowerment (r = .521, p \u0026lt; .01). In addition, psychological empowerment showed a moderate positive association with teacher well-being (r = .490, p \u0026lt; .01).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIntraclass correlation coefficients were examined to assess the proportion of variance attributable to between-school differences and to justify the use of multilevel analysis. The ICC₁ estimates indicated that a meaningful proportion of variance was attributable to schools for school culture (ICC₁ = .325), psychological empowerment (ICC₁ = .233), and teacher well-being (ICC₁ = .166). Considering the average cluster size (k\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;9.250), the corresponding ICC₂ values suggested high reliability of school-level aggregates for school culture (ICC₂ = .820) and psychological empowerment (ICC₂ = .740), as well as acceptable reliability for teacher well-being (ICC₂ = .750).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAt the school level (N\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;52), aggregated scale scores indicated relatively high levels of school culture (M\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;4.54, SD\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.35), psychological empowerment (M\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;5.59, SD\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.82), and teacher well-being (M\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;3.40, SD\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.35). Correlation analyses at the school level showed that school culture was moderately associated with psychological empowerment (r = .398, p \u0026lt; .01) and teacher well-being (r = .496, p \u0026lt; .01). Moreover, psychological empowerment and teacher well-being exhibited a strong positive association (r = .805, p \u0026lt; .01), suggesting that schools characterized by higher collective empowerment tend to report higher overall levels of teacher well-being.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eFinally, multicollinearity diagnostics indicated no serious concerns at either level of analysis. Tolerance values (.728 at the teacher level and .841 at the school level) and variance inflation factor values (VIF\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;1.37 at the teacher level and 1.19 at the school level) remained well within recommended thresholds. Taken together, these findings support the empirical distinctiveness of the study constructs and provide a robust justification for the subsequent multilevel structural equation modeling analyses.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec16\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003eMulti-Level Analysis\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn the analytical process, the model was initially estimated using 5,000 iterations; however, at this stage, the potential scale reduction (PSR) values did not sufficiently approach the recommended threshold of 1.05. Therefore, the number of iterations was gradually increased, and the model was re-estimated using 30,000 iterations. After approximately 24,200 iterations, the PSR value decreased to 1.047, indicating that the model had achieved convergence. In addition, as the number of iterations increased, the variability observed in the trace plots decreased substantially, and the parameter estimates became more stable. Figure\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e presents the Bayesian multi-level model schematic.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e presents the results of the Bayesian multilevel structural equation model examining the relationships among school culture, psychological empowerment, and teacher subjective well-being at both the teacher (within) and school (between) levels.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab2\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 2\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBayesian multi-level SEM results\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"8\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c8\" colnum=\"8\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePath\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eβ\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c4\" namest=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePosterior SD\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ez\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e%95 Credible Interval\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ep\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u0026sup2;\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eWithin (Individual level)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePE \u0026rarr; TSW\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.498\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.040\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e12.45\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e[0.416, 0.570]\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.248\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eGender \u0026rarr; TSW\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.003\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.041\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.07\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e[\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;0.086, 0.099]\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.490\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTeaching experience \u0026rarr; TSW\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.041\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.042\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.97\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e[\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;0.044, 0.119]\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.150\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eBetween (School level)\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSC \u0026rarr; PE\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.446\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.140\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.19\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e[0.138, 0.682]\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.003\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.199\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePE \u0026rarr; TSW\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.731\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.136\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.38\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e[0.417, 0.940]\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSC \u0026rarr; TSW\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.339\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.166\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e[0.010, 0.660]\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.022\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIndirect Effect (SC \u0026rarr; PE\u0026rarr; TSW)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.326\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.048\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.79\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e[0.268, 0.381]\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTotal Effect (SC \u0026rarr; TSW)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.665\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.067\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e9.92\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e[0.532, 0.798]\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.895\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec17\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003eWithin-level (Teacher level) effects\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eAt the teacher level, teachers\u0026rsquo; individual perceptions of psychological empowerment had a strong and statistically significant effect on teacher subjective well-being (β\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.498, 95% CI [.416, .570]). This result provides support for H3W, indicating that teachers who perceive more psychological empowerment than their colleagues within the same school report higher levels of subjective well-being. In contrast, neither gender (β\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.003, 95% CI [\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;.086, .099]) nor teaching experience (β\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.041, 95% CI [\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;.044, .119]) significantly predicted teacher well-being at the individual level. The within-level model explained 24.8% of the variance in teacher subjective well-being (R\u0026sup2; = .248).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec18\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003eBetween-level (School level) effects\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eAt the school level, perceived school culture exerted a positive and statistically significant effect on psychological empowerment (β\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.446, 95% CI [.138, .682]), supporting H2. This finding indicates that schools characterized by stronger shared cultural environments tend to exhibit higher collective levels of psychological empowerment among teachers. School culture accounted for 19.9% of the variance in psychological empowerment at the school level (R\u0026sup2; = .199).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003ePsychological empowerment, in turn, showed a strong positive effect on teacher subjective well-being at the school level (β\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.731, 95% CI [.417, .940]), providing support for H3B. This result suggests that schools in which teachers collectively feel more empowered also report higher overall levels of teacher well-being. In addition, school culture had a direct effect on teacher subjective well-being at the school level (β\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.339, 95% CI [.010, .660]). Although statistically significant, this effect was weaker than the indirect pathway operating through psychological empowerment, indicating partial support for H1.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec19\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003eMediation analysis\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eMediation analyses further demonstrated that psychological empowerment played a significant mediating role in the relationship between school culture and teacher subjective well-being at the school level. The indirect effect of school culture on teacher well-being through psychological empowerment was statistically credible (β\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.326, 95% CI [.268, .381]), supporting H4. Moreover, the total effect of school culture on teacher subjective well-being was strong and significant (β\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.665, 95% CI [.532, .798], p \u0026lt; .001), with the full model explaining 89.5% of the variance in teacher well-being at the school level (R\u0026sup2; = .895).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"Discussion","content":"\u003cp\u003eThis study extends the literature by modeling the relationship between school culture and teachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being within a 2\u0026ndash;2\u0026ndash;1 multilevel mediation framework, identifying school-level psychological empowerment as a key cross-level mechanism linking organizational context to individual well-being in a centralized education system. Using multilevel structural equation modeling, the findings demonstrate that school culture is positively associated with both teachers\u0026rsquo; psychological empowerment and subjective well-being, and that psychological empowerment plays a significant mediating role in this relationship. These results underscore the importance of organizational conditions in shaping teachers\u0026rsquo; psychological functioning and professional experiences.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAt both the individual and school levels, school culture was positively and significantly associated with teachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR35\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e35\u003c/span\u003e]. Teachers who perceived their schools as collaborative, supportive, and trust-based reported higher levels of well-being. This finding is consistent with prior research showing that positive school climates are associated with lower emotional exhaustion and higher job satisfaction and engagement [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR2\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR70\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e70\u003c/span\u003e]. School culture functions as a shared social context that shapes how teachers interpret their work experiences and sense of belonging. When schools promote collegial relationships, open communication, and shared responsibility, teachers are more likely to experience professional fulfillment and positive emotional functioning.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eA further key finding concerns the strong relationship between school culture and psychological empowerment. Schools characterized by trust, collaboration, and participatory decision-making were associated with higher collective empowerment perceptions among teachers. This result aligns with previous evidence suggesting that supportive organizational environments foster autonomy, competence, and professional influence [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR13\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e13\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR9\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e9\u003c/span\u003e]. The magnitude of this association indicates that psychological empowerment is not merely an individual attribute but is largely shaped by shared organizational norms and leadership practices. In contexts that encourage professional dialogue and participation, teachers are more likely to perceive their work as meaningful and impactful [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR51\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e51\u003c/span\u003e].\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003ePsychological empowerment was also a strong predictor of teachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being at both the individual and school levels. Teachers who perceived themselves as competent, autonomous, and influential reported higher levels of well-being. This finding is consistent with self-determination theory, which emphasizes the role of autonomy and competence in promoting psychological functioning [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR16\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e16\u003c/span\u003e]. Previous studies similarly indicate that empowered teachers experience greater job satisfaction, lower stress, and stronger professional commitment [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR43\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e43\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR28\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e28\u003c/span\u003e]. In this respect, empowerment emerges as a critical psychological resource supporting teachers\u0026rsquo; capacity to manage professional demands and maintain positive emotional experiences.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eOne of the central contributions of this study is the identification of psychological empowerment as a mediating mechanism linking school culture and teachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being. The findings indicate that school culture influences well-being both directly and indirectly through empowerment. While the direct association remained significant, the indirect pathway suggests that collaborative and supportive school environments enhance teachers\u0026rsquo; well-being primarily by strengthening perceptions of autonomy, competence, and impact. This pattern is consistent with social cognitive theory, which posits that environmental conditions shape beliefs that subsequently influence emotional outcomes [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR69\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e69\u003c/span\u003e].\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eOverall, the results emphasize that school culture represents a foundational organizational mechanism through which teachers\u0026rsquo; psychological empowerment and well-being are shaped. In centralized education systems such as the KRG context, where structural autonomy is limited, school-level cultural conditions appear particularly salient. Even within hierarchical governance structures, participatory and supportive school cultures can enhance empowerment and well-being, highlighting the critical role of school leadership in shaping teachers\u0026rsquo; professional experiences. Strengthening collaborative school cultures may therefore represent a viable strategy for promoting teacher well-being and sustaining effective school functioning.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec21\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003eLimitations\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThis study has various limitations. First, the convenience sampling and data gathered in Erbil city only restrict the extrapolation of the results to other parts of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Second, cross-sectional and relational study designs cannot be interpreted causally to suggest the relationships between school culture, psychological empowerment, and subjective well-being of teachers. Although convenience sampling is a non-probability method and may limit the generalizability of the findings, efforts were made to include teachers from different school levels (primary, middle, and high school) and from public institutions in order to enhance the diversity of the sample. Lastly, common method bias might have been caused by the use of self-reports, although attempts to minimize the effect of this factor were made. These limitations can be overcome in future studies through the use of longitudinal designs, larger and more varied sample sizes, and mixed-method designs.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"Conclusion","content":"\u003cp\u003eThis study highlights the central role of school culture in shaping teachers\u0026rsquo; psychological empowerment and subjective well-being. The findings demonstrate that collaborative, supportive, and trust-based school cultures are positively associated with higher levels of teacher empowerment, which in turn enhances teachers\u0026rsquo; well-being. Psychological empowerment was identified as a key mechanism through which school culture influences teachers\u0026rsquo; professional experiences. These results underscore the importance of strengthening positive school cultures as a practical strategy for promoting teacher well-being and sustaining effective school functioning, particularly within centralized educational systems.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Abbreviations","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"DefinitionList\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"DefinitionListEntry\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"Term\"\u003eTSWQ\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"Description\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTeacher Subjective Well-Being Questionnaire\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"DefinitionListEntry\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"Term\"\u003eICC\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"Description\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIntraclass Correlation Coefficient\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"DefinitionListEntry\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"Term\"\u003eSEM\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"Description\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eStructural Equation Model\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"Declarations","content":" \u003cp\u003e \u003cstrong\u003eEthics Approval and Consent to Participate\u003c/strong\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe study was approved by Fırat University Social and Human Sciences Research Ethics Committee (date: 04.03.2026, decision no: 2024-05). Additionally, written informed consent was obtained from all participants before data collection.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cstrong\u003eConsent for Publication\u003c/strong\u003e \u003cp\u003eNot applicable\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003ch2\u003eCompeting Interests\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe authors declare that there is no conflict of interest with any institution or person within the scope of the study.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003ch2\u003eAuthors\u0026rsquo; Information\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eM\u0026uuml;slim ALANOĞLU, Fırat University, Education Faculty, Educational Sciences, Elazığ, T\u0026uuml;rkiye. [email protected], \u003cspan class=\"ExternalRef\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"RefSource\"\u003ehttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-1828-4593\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan address=\"https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1828-4593\" targettype=\"URL\" class=\"RefTarget\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eRebin Salih KHUDHUR, Faculty of Education, Fırat University, Elazığ, T\u0026uuml;rkiye. [email protected], \u003cspan class=\"ExternalRef\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"RefSource\"\u003ehttps://orcid.org/\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan address=\"https://orcid.org/\" targettype=\"URL\" class=\"RefTarget\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e 0009-0002-9232-4389\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eZ\u0026uuml;lf\u0026uuml; DEMIRTAŞ, Faculty of Education, Fırat University, Elazığ, [email protected],\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cspan class=\"ExternalRef\"\u003e \u003cspan class=\"RefSource\"\u003ehttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-1072-5772\u003c/span\u003e \u003cspan address=\"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1072-5772\" targettype=\"URL\" class=\"RefTarget\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eFunding\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThis study was supported by the Scientific Research Projects Coordination Unit of Fırat University (FUBAP) under Project No. EF.26.11\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eAuthor Contribution\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eStudy management: MA; study design and conceptualization: MA, ZD, RSK; data collection: RSK; Data analysis: MA; validation of findings and interpretation of the results: ZD; Preparation of the manuscript draft: MA, ZD, RSK. All authors reviewed the results and approved the final version of the manuscript.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eAcknowledgements\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eWe would like to thank all teachers who contributed to the study as participants.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eData Availability\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe datasets generated and/or analysed during the current study are not publicly available due to the inclusion of sensitive qualitative data and the potential risk of participant identification, but are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"References","content":"\u003col\u003e\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDay C, Gu Q. The new lives of teachers. Routledge; 2010 Jun. p. 10.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOECD. Measuring Subjective Well-Being and progress: Subjective Well-Being indicators. 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Psychol Methods. 2017;22(2):304\u0026ndash;21.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\u003c/ol\u003e"}],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":true,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":true,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":false,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":false,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"bmc-psychology","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"psyo","sideBox":"Learn more about [BMC Psychology](http://bmcpsychology.biomedcentral.com/)","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"","title":"BMC Psychology","twitterHandle":"BMC_series","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"BMC Series","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9054256/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9054256/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eThis study examines the relationship between school culture and teachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being by considering the mediating role of psychological empowerment. A cross-sectional relational research design was employed, and data were analyzed using multilevel structural equation modeling. The study sample consisted of 481 teachers working in public schools in Erbil city, Kurdistan Region of Iraq. The findings indicate that school culture has a positive and significant effect on teachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being at both the individual and school levels. In addition, school culture was found to strongly predict teachers\u0026rsquo; psychological empowerment at the school level. Psychological empowerment, in turn, was positively associated with teachers\u0026rsquo; subjective well-being and played a significant mediating role in the relationship between school culture and well-being. These findings demonstrate that caring and supportive school cultures are relevant to empowering teachers and improving their psychological functioning. Based on these results, the discussion highlights the effects of school culture on the empowerment experiences of teachers and the impact of empowerment on increased subjective well-being. The findings give strong suggestions that positive school cultures have to be developed to encourage teacher well-being, especially in centralized education systems.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Linking School Culture to Teachers’ Psychological Empowerment and Subjective Well-Being: A Multilevel Mediation Study","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2026-04-14 15:14:35","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9054256/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0},{"type":"decision","content":"Revision requested","date":"2026-05-11T09:41:10+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2026-05-01T12:56:47+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2026-04-20T10:49:08+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"139921652785858687730261741555798073348","date":"2026-04-15T10:48:14+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"14347482197192384159690184103387066377","date":"2026-04-14T19:39:39+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"11821803075792309663925663541261767432","date":"2026-04-10T01:49:12+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"221492468990516270822784256377184237087","date":"2026-04-09T20:45:32+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewersInvited","content":"","date":"2026-04-07T15:26:47+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvited","content":"","date":"2026-03-10T09:17:22+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorAssigned","content":"","date":"2026-03-09T22:07:24+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"checksComplete","content":"","date":"2026-03-09T22:06:50+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"submitted","content":"BMC Psychology","date":"2026-03-06T22:53:10+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"bmc-psychology","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"psyo","sideBox":"Learn more about [BMC Psychology](http://bmcpsychology.biomedcentral.com/)","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"","title":"BMC Psychology","twitterHandle":"BMC_series","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"BMC Series","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"7b46e9f1-f249-4644-a265-15200cda2b7b","owner":[],"postedDate":"April 14th, 2026","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[{"type":"decision","content":"Revision requested","date":"2026-05-11T09:41:10+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2026-05-01T12:56:47+00:00","index":68,"fulltext":""}],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"under-review","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-05-14T14:39:37+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2026-04-14 15:14:35","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-9054256","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-9054256","identity":"rs-9054256","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}