The Role of Grit and Resilience in Work Engagement of Iranian EFL Teachers in Online Classes with a Focus on Gender
- Department of English Language, Ta.C., Islamic Azad University, Tabriz, Iran
Received: 2025-02-15
Revised: 2025-03-15
Accepted: 2025-03-29
Published in Issue 2025-04-23
Copyright (c) 2025 Mahnaz Saeidi (Author)

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
How to Cite
PDF views: 252
Abstract
Owing to the significant role of work engagement in language teaching in online classes, some scholarly attention has been drawn to exploring the role of some constructs such as grit and resilience. The current study looked into the role of grit and resilience in Iranian EFL teachers’ work engagement in online classes with a focus on gender. Utilizing a convenient sampling method, 250 EFL teachers (110 males and 140 females) participated in an online survey consisting of three validated questionnaires. After verifying that the data is normal, the variables’ correlations were examined using Pearson correlation analysis. The findings revealed that grit and resilience both have a direct relationship with Iranian EFL teachers’ work engagement and could predict it up to 52%. However, the association between grit, resilience, and work engagement was unaffected by gender which indicates male and female teachers experience similar grit and resilience with their engagement levels. The study presents some practical implications for EFL teachers, learners, and teacher trainers especially in developing online education.
Keywords
- Gender,
- Grit,
- Online teaching,
- Resilience,
- Work engagement
References
- Al Qarni, D., Anjum, A., & Rafique, R. (2023). Development and Validation of Grit Scale for Young Adults. Pakistan Journal of Psychological Research, 38(3).
- Adnan, A., & Yunisari, C. (2023). TPACK: Teachers' Needs. Ta'dib, 26(1), 143-156.
- Albrecht, Simon & Leiter, Michael. (2011). Work engagement: Further reflections on the state of play. European Journal of Work & Organizational Psychology. 20. 74-88. 10.1080/1359432X.2010.546711.
- Albesher, K. B. (2022). The Effect of Google-Mediated Collaborative Writing on English as a Second Language Students’ Global and Local Writing Features. SAGE Open, 14(4), 21582440241290034.
- Baker, F. R., Baker, K. L., & Burrell, J. (2021). Introducing the skills‐based model of personal resilience: Drawing on content and process factors to build resilience in the workplace. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 94(2), 458-481.
- Baraquia, L. (2020). Development of a Teacher Grit Scale (TGS): Predicting the performance of educators in the Philippines.
- Baraquia, L. (2020). Development of a Teacher Grit Scale (TGS): Predicting the performance of educators in the Philippines. The New Educational Review, 60(2), 165-177.
- Bao, P., Xiao, Z., Bao, G., & Noorderhaven, N. (2022). Inclusive leadership and employee work engagement: a moderated mediation model. Baltic Journal of Management, 17(1), 124-139.
- Bruneti, G. J. (2006). Resilience under fire: Perspectives on the work of experienced inner- city high school teachers in the United States. Teaching & Teacher Education,22, 812-825.
- Berges, G. (2023). Heartful Education. Benefits from Teaching Unity in Schools. Research Studies, 3(10), 2037-2044.
- Carrano, A., Juarez, J. J., Incontri, D., Ibarra, A., & Cazares, H. G. (2021). Sex-specific differences in glioblastoma. Cells, 10(7), 1783.
- Connor, K. M., & Davidson, J. R. (2003). Development of a new resilience scale: The Connor‐Davidson resilience scale (CD‐RISC). Depression and anxiety, 18(2), 76-82.
- Derakhshan, A., & Shakki, F. (2024). Opportunities and Challenges of Implementing Online English Courses in Iranian Public and Private Schools. Journal of Research in Applied Linguistics, 15(1), 17-31.
- Derakhshan, A. (2022a). The 5Cs positive teacher interpersonal behaviors: Implications for learner empowerment and learning in an L2 context. Springer Nature.
- Derakhshan, A., Dewaele, J. M., & Noughabi, M. A. (2022b). Modeling the contribution of resilience, well-being, and L2 grit to foreign language teaching enjoyment among Iranian English language teachers. System, 109, 102890.
- Derakhshan, A., Kruk, M., Mehdizadeh, M., & Pawlak, M. (2021). Boredom in online classes in the Iranian EFL context: Sources and solutions. System, 101, 102556.
- Duckworth, A. L., Gendler, T. S., & Gross, J. J. (2016). Situational strategies for self- control. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 11(1), 35-55.
- Duckworth, A. L., Peterson, C., Matthews, M. D., & Kelly, D. R. (2007). Grit: perseverance and passion for long-term goals. Journal of personality and social psychology, 92(6), 1087.
- Estaji, M., & Taghizadeh, M. S. (2024). Work Engagement in Online Instructional Settings: Unveiling Iranian EFL Teachers’ Perspectives and Experiences. جستارهای زبانی, 15(5), 121-144.
- Farrell, T. S. (2012). Novice‐service language teacher development: Bridging the gap between preservice and in‐service education and development. Tesol Quarterly, 46(3),435-449.
- Fathi, J., Zhang, L. J., & Arefian, M. H. (2024). Testing a model of EFL teachers’ work engagement: The roles of teachers’ professional identity, L2 grit, and foreign language teaching enjoyment. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, 62(4), 2087-2119.
- Fathi, J., Zhang, L. J., & Arefian, M. H. (2023). Testing a model of EFL teachers’ work engagement: The roles of teachers’ professional identity, L2 grit, and foreign language teaching enjoyment. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, (0).
- Fraschini, N., & Tao, H. (2021). Anxiety in language teachers: Exploring the variety of perceptions with Q methodology. Foreign Language Annals, 54(2), 341-364.
- Fraschini, N., & Tao, Y. (2024). Emotions in online language learning: exploratory findings from an ab initio Korean course. Journal of multilingual and multicultural development, 45(5), 1305-1323.
- Greenier, V., Derakhshan, A., & Fathi, J. (2021). Emotion regulation and psychological well-being in teacher work engagement: a case of British and Iranian English language teachers. System, 97, 102446.
- Hamideh Kerdar, S., Bächler, L., & Kirchhoff, B. M. (2024). The accessibility of digital technologies for people with visual impairment and blindness: a scoping review. Discover Computing, 27(1), 24.
- Han, Y., & Wang, Y. (2021). Investigating the correlation among Chinese EFL teachers' self- efficacy, work engagement, and reflection. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 763234.
- Hascher, T., Beltman, S., & Mansfield, C. (2021). Teacher wellbeing and resilience: Towards an integrative model. Educational research, 63(4), 416-439.
- Istiqomah, S., Suhirman, S., & Friantary, H. (2023). Implementation of Character Education Values in Indonesian Language Learning. Jadila: Journal of Development and Innovation in Language and Literature Education, 3(2), 118-130.
- Karanika-Murray, M., Duncan, N., Pontes, H. M., & Griffiths, M. D. (2015). Organizational identification, work engagement, and job satisfaction. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 30(8), 1019-1033.
- Khatoony, S., & Nezhadmehr, M. (2020). EFL teachers' challenges in integration of technology for online classrooms during Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in Iran. AJELP: Asian Journal of English Language and Pedagogy, 8(2), 89-104.
- MacIntyre, P., Mercer, S., Gregersen, T., & Hay, A. (2022). The role of hope in language teachers' changing stress, coping, and well-being. System, 109, 102881.
- Maslach, C., & Leiter, M. P. (2000). The truth about burnout: How organizations cause personal stress and what to do about it. John Wiley & Sons.
- Mohan, V., & Kaur, J. (2021). Assessing the Relationship between Grit and Academic Resilience among Students. Issues and Ideas in Education, 9(1), 39-47.
- Moser, K. M., Wei, T., & Brenner, D. (2021). Remote teaching during COVID-19: Implications from a national survey of language educators. System, 97, 102431.
- Mahmoudzadeh, M. (2014). The impact of new technologies on teaching and learning English. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 136, 345-349.
- Moşteanu, N. R. (2024). Adapting to the Unpredictable: Building Resilience for Business Continuity in an Ever-Changing Landscape. European Journal of Theoretical and Applied Sciences, 2(1), 444-457.
- Rezazadeh, M., & Ghafar Samar, R. (2021). Challenges and opportunities of EFL teachers in the transition from face-to-face to online instruction during COVID-19 pandemic in Iran. Cogent Education, 8(1), 1-17
- Rogers, S. (2017). What’s Grit Got To Do with Learning?. AACE Review, December.
- Schaufeli, W. B., Salanova, M., González-Romá, V., & Bakker, A. B. (2002). The measurement of engagement and burnout: A two sample confirmatory factor analytic approach. Journal of Happiness studies, 3, 71-92.
- Shahvarani, F. S., Azari Noughabi, M., & Razi, A. (2023). Investigating the contribution of engagement and resilience to EFL teachers’ L2 grit. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 1-13.
- Sigmundsson, H., Haga, M., & Hermundsdottir, F. (2020). Passion, grit and mindset in young adults: Exploring the relationship and gender differences. New Ideas in Psychology, 59, 100795.
- Skaalvik, E. M., & Skaalvik, S. (2017). Dimensions of teacher burnout: Relations with potential stressors at school. Social Psychology of Education, 20, 775-790.
- Suzuki, Y., Tamesue, D., Asahi, K., & Ishikawa, Y. (2015). Grit and work engagement: A cross-sectional study. PloS one, 10(9), e0137501
- Taqi, H. A., Al-Darwish, S. H., Akbar, R. S., & Al-Gharabali, N. A. (2015). Choosing an English Teacher: The Influence of Gender on the Students' Choice of Language Teachers. English Language Teaching, 8(12), 182-190.
- Van Beek, I., Hu, Q., Schaufeli, W. B., Taris, T. W., & Schreurs, B. H. (2012). For fun, love, or money: What drives workaholic, engaged, and burned‐out employees at work?. Applied psychology, 61(1), 30-55.
- Wang, Y., Derakhshan, A., & Rahimpour, H. (2024). Developing resilience among Chinese and Iranian EFL teachers: A multi-dimensional cross-cultural study. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 45(6), 2111-2128.
- Wang, Y., Derakhshan, A., & Zhang, L. J. (2021). Researching and practicing positive psychology in second/foreign language learning and teaching: the past, current status and future directions. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 731721.
- Williams, N. R., Davey, M., & Klock-Powell, K. (2003). Rising from the ashes: stories of recovery, adaptation and resiliency in burn survivors. Social Work in Health Care, 36(4), 53-77.
- Wang, L. (2022). Exploring the relationship among teacher emotional intelligence, work engagement, teacher self-efficacy, and student academic achievement: A moderated mediation model. Frontiers in psychology, 12, 810559.
- Yadav, N., Gupta, K., & Khetrapal, V. (2018). Next Education: Technology Transforming Education. South Asian Journal of Business and Management Cases, 7(1), 68-77. https://doi.org/10.1177/2277977918754443
- Yazdanpour, H. (2015). Designing and validating a scale to measure teacher attention and finding its relationship with job burnout. Master's thesis, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran. [In Persian]
- Yeager, D. S., & Dweck, C. S. (2012). Mindsets that promote resilience: When students believe that personal characteristics can be developed. Educational psychologist, 47(4), 302-314.
- Yudiarti, A., & Putranta, M. P. (2022). The influence of grit towards work engagement and the moderating role of perceived organizational support. Jurnal Aplikasi Manajemen, 20(4), 963-972.
- Zhang, M., Zhang, Y., Wang, L., Liu, H., & Cheng, P. (2020). Occupational support and mental health in special education teachers: resilience and years of teaching experience as mediator and moderator. Revista Argentina de Clínica Psicológica, 29(5), 420.
- Zou, D., & Wang, Y. (2024). EFL Teachers in the Digital Era: A Journey of Adaptation. OALib, 11(04), 1-12.
10.57647/jntell.2025.0401.06
