The effect of Iranian teachers` burnout on using paralanguage signals in EFL context

The study aims at 1) determining the level of burnout among EFL English language teachers in Hamedan, Iran by measuring their level of burnout in its components and its relationship with teaching experience and gender and 2) investigating to what extent paralanguage signals are affected by teachers burnout in the learning process. Participants of the study consisted of 138 institute teachers including 71 men and 67 women. Their experiences in teaching ranged from 6-10, 11-15 and over 16 years with the age range of 20 to 40 years old. The study tended to use Maslach Burnout Inventory MBI questionnaire to measure the level of burnout among teachers and then observation of classrooms of those burnout suffering teachers. Burnout syndrome was compared with teaching experience and gender of the participants using descriptive statistics and regression analysis. The results indicated that male teachers suffered burnout more than female teachers. Considering burnout and teaching experience, the results showed that teachers who reached 16 years of teaching encountered burnout syndrome. Also it was indicated that gender predicts emotional exhaustion and burnout more than teaching experience. Having identified 64 burnout teachers, 15 of them were observed. Classroom observations revealed that paralanguage signals were affected by burnout syndrome. The study might contribute to policy makers keeping teachers from destructive psychological and social factors and changes so as to plan to improve learning in the classrooms.