Preventing Teacher's Professional Deformations: a Need-Based Motivational Approach

The problem of preventing teachers' professional deformations has become very relevant in today's socio-cultural context. Continuous changes in the world and society are affecting all levels of education. Socio-cultural transformations are changing the usual forms of social interaction between educational stakeholders, and the processes of digitalization and informatization are imposing new demands on teachers' professional competence. The aim of this study was to identify and justify a needs-based approach for preventing professional deformation in teachers in modern educational environments. Research methods included content analysis and theoretical analysis of psychological and educational literature. The study of the possibilities of need-motivational approaches presupposes solving several tasks, such as considering the essence of concepts like “professional deformation” and “professional destruction”, their relationship to professional development, and concepts of needs, motivation, subjectivity, and defining the role of subjective development in preventing professional deformation. The results confirm the need for teachers to develop skills in recognizing difficulties, understanding and distinguishing between professional deformations, identifying and meeting needs in an ever-changing socio-cultural environment, including continuity of professional development, increased social responsibility, and increasing complexity of tasks. It has been proved that the need-based motivational approach to preventing professional deformation contributes to the formation and development of the teacher's subjectivity, orienting them towards continuous development, promoting an understanding of their own activities and awareness of their needs for professional development, as well as forming motivation to identify personal resources and develop a professional development strategy. This position was confirmed by L.M. Mitina says that the model of adaptive behavior contributes to a teacher's ability to adapt to the conditions of the professional environment and activity, including mastering and adopting the experience of others, solving professional problems using learned algorithms, and “canonicalizing” one's own experiences according to stereotypes. However, it does not contribute to the identification of needs for professional development, which is associated with the risk of developing professional deformities. This is because the presence of a teacher in a model of adaptation limits his professional and personal resources.