Programas de bem-estar mental para professores: uma revisão de literatura

Abstract

Teachers’ mental health has become an increasingly relevant concern in the educational field due to the growing prevalence of stress, anxiety, depression, and burnout associated with the demands and working conditions of teaching. This scenario reinforces the need to systematize and critically analyze programs and interventions reported in the literature to promote well-being and prevent mental health problems, considering both indicators of psychological distress and protective resources and socio-emotional competencies involved in teaching practice. Therefore, this study aimed to examine national and international programs designed to promote teachers’ mental health, comparing their theoretical foundations, characteristics, assessed indicators, and outcomes. Methodologically, this research consists of an integrative literature review with a qualitative approach and a descriptive, comparative, and interpretative purpose. Searches were conducted in national and international databases (ERIC, Scopus, PsycInfo, and SciELO), using descriptors in English, Portuguese, and Spanish combined with Boolean operators, and applying publication year filters (2021–2025) and previously defined inclusion and exclusion criteria. After screening titles, abstracts, and keywords, followed by full-text reading and duplicate removal, the final corpus comprised nine studies. The results indicated a diversity of interventions aimed at teachers’ mental health, with a predominance of approaches based on mindfulness, self-compassion/compassion, cognitive-behavioral therapy, yoga, and the development of socio-emotional competencies, as well as technology mediated proposals. Regarding assessment strategies, most studies relied on psychological scales and questionnaires to measure indicators such as psychological well-being, perceived stress, anxiety and depression symptoms, burnout, resilience, emotional regulation, self-efficacy, and job satisfaction. Overall, the studies reported positive effects of the interventions on the assessed indicators, particularly reductions in stress and burnout and the strengthening of protective resources, although variations were observed in study designs, samples, instruments, and program delivery formats. It is concluded that the analyzed interventions represent promising strategies to strengthen teacher well-being and promote mental health in educational contexts. However, the reviewed literature remains predominantly oriented toward the development of individual resources, indicating the need to expand research and policies that more consistently incorporate institutional, organizational, and structural dimensions related to teaching work, in order to address contextual determinants of professional distress and support sustainable conditions for teacher care and professional recognition.