Kwartalnik Pedagogiczny
pl
Oryginalny artykuł naukowy
Kwartalnik Pedagogiczny

Challenges, collaboration, and career sustainability: Experiences of school counsellors in Eastern Croatia

2026, 71, Numer 1

Dragana Božić Lenard

0000-0003-4479-1329

Uniwersytet w Osijeku

DOI

10.31338/2657-6007.kp.2026-1.7

Data publikacji

23.06.2026

Model publikowania

hybrydowy

Rodzaj licencji

CC BY 4.0 Int.

Dziedzina

Dziedzina nauk społecznych

Dyscyplina

pedagogika

Język publikacji

Angielski

Liczba wyświetleń:5

Liczba pobrań:0

Cytowania Crossref:0

Wynik Altmetric:0

Abstrakt

School counsellors play a pivotal role in supporting students’ academic, emotional, and social development, yet their position within schools is often marked by ambiguities and competing expectations. This study investigates the experiences and perceptions of school counsellors in eastern Croatia with a focus on their professional roles, collaboration with teachers, and interactions with parents. The study examined how school counsellors perceive their roles and contributions to school culture, the key challenges and opportunities they encounter in their professional practice, and whether these perceptions differ across demographic factors such as gender, experience, and workplace setting. A mixed-methods approach was employed, combining quantitative data from a structured survey with qualitative insights derived from open-ended questionnaire responses. Quantitative data provided an overview of counsellors’ roles, challenges, and job satisfaction, while qualitative thematic analysis offered deeper explanations and contextual interpretations of these patterns. The thematic findings were derived through systematic coding, categorization, and refinement of open-ended responses, allowing emergent themes to complement and expand upon the statistical results. The research highlights the complexities of counselling work, including role ambiguity, high parental expectations, and structural constraints within schools. Findings indicate that while collaboration with teachers is frequent, its effectiveness depends on structured support, shared norms, and leadership engagement. Counsellors’ job satisfaction is shaped by personal resources such as emotional intelligence and self-efficacy, as well as by external factors including workload, time constraints, and institutional recognition. Career-sustaining behaviors, peer support, constructive feedback, and participation in professional learning communities, are vital in maintaining motivation and preventing professional isolation. The study underscores the necessity of systemic support, clear role definitions, and active engagement of both school leadership and parents to enhance counsellor effectiveness and professional well-being.

Słowa kluczowe:

parental collaboration,role ambiguity,school counsellors,school culture,teachercounsellor collaboration

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