JOB SATISFACTION OF AMERICAN TEACHERS IN THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES SCHOOLS

Job satisfaction, across career fields, is not the result of just one factor and may be based upon compensation, work environment, professional development and advancement opportunities, as well as administrative support (Wood, 1973; Agho, Mueller, and Price, 2003). When narrowed to look only at the job satisfaction of teachers, the main bases are administrative support and collegial relationships, salary, and school setting (Ingersoll, 2001; Luekens, Lyter & Fox, 2004; Moore-Johnson, & Birkeland, 2003). To date, most of the research on the job satisfaction of teachers has been conducted on those teachers working in the United States. Consequently, minimal research exists on the experiences of American teachers who are teaching abroad. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has become a destination of choice for American teachers working abroad. Currently, over 2,000 American teachers are employed in the UAE. The purpose of this study is to examine the levels of job satisfaction and the impact of administrative support and collegial relationships and compensation on the job satisfaction of American schoolteachers in the UAE. Utilizing a quantitative methodology, this study surveyed 140 American teachers in the UAE in an effort to quantify their overall job satisfaction in the UAE and the correlation between job satisfaction and administrative and collegial support and compensation. Data obtained from a survey created by the researcher was analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) to look for correlations and statistically significant relationships. Study findings indicate that there is a weak correlation between compensation and overall job satisfaction. Additionally, there is a statistically significant relationship between administrative support and collegial relationships and the overall job satisfaction of American teachers teaching in the UAE. Moreover, the findings of this study and the lack of prior research indicated that there is a need for more research in this area.