Associations between emotional intelligence, work motivation, and job satisfaction among educators in southern Peru
Aliaga Salcedo E.; Richard-Pérez S.E.; Cjuno J. · Frontiers in Education (2026) · DOI: 10.3389/feduc.2026.1833635
Resumen
Background – Job satisfaction among educators has become a relevant concern for both public health and organizational functioning, particularly in socially vulnerable educational contexts in southern Peru. Objective – To examine the structural relationships among emotional intelligence, teacher work motivation, and job satisfaction among educators in southern Peru. Materials and methods – A cross-sectional study using structural equation modeling was conducted with a latent variable design in a non-probabilistic convenience sample of 294 educators from the Puno region (M = 41.66, SD = 6.51), of whom 58.2% were women. The Wong–Law Emotional Intelligence Scale (WLEIS-S), the Work Tasks Motivation Scale for Teachers (WTMST), and the Wall Job Satisfaction Scale were administered. Correlation analyses and structural equation modeling were performed. Results – The structural model demonstrated marginally acceptable fit (CFI = 0.948; TLI = 0.943; RMSEA = 0.089). Teacher work motivation showed the strongest structural association with job satisfaction (β = 0.35, p < .001), whereas emotional intelligence was also positively associated with job satisfaction (β = 0.19, p < .001). Emotional intelligence was positively associated with teacher work motivation (β = 0.17, p < .01). The model explained 22% of the variance in job satisfaction (R2 = .22). Conclusions – Teacher work motivation exhibited the strongest structural association with job satisfaction, whereas emotional intelligence was positively associated with both teacher work motivation and job satisfaction. Because of the cross-sectional design and the use of self-report measures, these findings should be interpreted as structural associations rather than evidence of causal or mediational relationships.
Instituciones: Universidad Peruana Unión