How perceived organizational support is associated with thriving at work: the chain-mediating roles of professional competence and psychological empowerment among mental health teachers.

PURPOSE: The research investigated the correlation between perceived organizational support and thriving at work among mental health teachers, emphasizing the mediating effects of professional competence and psychological empowerment. METHODS: A cross-sectional design was used to gather data from 323 mental health teachers via the Perceived Organizational Support Questionnaire, the Professional Competence Questionnaire for Mental Health Teachers, the Psychological Empowerment Scale, and the Thriving at Work Scale. Path analysis and the bootstrap method were applied to examine the relationships and mediating effects among the variables. RESULTS: The findings demonstrated that perceived organizational support positively predicted thriving at work; additionally, both professional competence and psychological empowerment acted as simple mediators and serially mediated the relationship between perceived organizational support and thriving at work. DISCUSSION: The study elucidates the internal mechanism by which perceived organizational support is associated with thriving at work, thereby filling a research gap related to mental health teachers, establishing a theoretical and empirical basis for future investigations, and providing actionable recommendations for school administrators to support thriving at work among mental health teachers.