Laura Holder Cope's Doctoral Dissertation
Still Showing Up: A Qualitative Study of Elementary Teachers’ Perspectives and Experiences with Challenging Behavior, Self-Efficacy, and Burnout
Challenging student behaviors create complex instructional and emotional demands for elementary general education teachers. Prior research has connected these demands with teacher self-efficacy, stress, and burnout. The purpose of this study was to examine how elementary general education teachers perceived and experienced challenging student behaviors and to understand how these experiences influenced their perceptions of self-efficacy and experiences of stress or burnout.
This qualitative descriptive study was conducted in one elementary school in Northeast Ohio. Data were gathered through semi-structured virtual interviews with four full-time general education teachers. Data were analyzed inductively using in vivo coding.
The findings revealed that teachers experienced behavioral demands as persistent and unpredictable. More visible, externalizing behaviors demanded immediate attention, while less visible behaviors were often addressed later. These behavioral challenges sometimes challenged teachers’ perceptions of professional competence and contributed to feelings of stress and burnout.
Teachers found support valuable but described it as not always effective or consistently available. The findings revealed that relationships with students and families and witnessing student growth helped sustain professional commitment. Participants described becoming more effective, reflective, and patient teachers through their experiences with challenging student behaviors.
This study concludes that teachers experienced challenging student behavior in relation to stress, perceptions of self-efficacy, and burnout within a broader context that included coping, relationships, collaboration, and institutional resources. Findings support responsive leadership, accessible behavioral support, relevant professional development, and preparation for the behavioral and emotional complexity of elementary classrooms.
Laura Holder Cope
MSW
Florida State University, 2010
B.A.Seriously Emotionally Handicapped
Purdue University, 1998
Laura Cope, a native of Indianapolis, Indiana, began her career as a special education teacher working with middle school students with emotional and behavioral disabilities. Her teaching career has spanned Indiana, Georgia, Florida, and Ohio, where she has worked with elementary and middle school students with diverse learning and behavioral needs. While teaching in Florida, Laura earned a Master of Social Work from Florida State University. Since relocating to Northeast Ohio in 2015, she has continued her work as an intervention specialist.
Laura has served on the executive voting committee of the Council for Exceptional Children’s Division for Emotional and Behavioral Health (DEBH) as Student Member-at-Large (2023–2025). She also collaborated with FASD United in developing a survey exploring educators’ knowledge and experiences teaching students with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD), contributing her perspective as a special education teacher. She currently serves on her school's Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) committee and has completed coursework through ¹ú²úÂ×Àí's Racial Equity Institute for Teachers.
Laura's professional interests center on social-emotional learning, student self-regulation, teacher well-being, and meaningful behavioral supports. Her doctoral research at ¹ú²úÂ×Àí explores elementary teachers' experiences with challenging student behaviors and their relationships with teacher self-efficacy, stress, and burnout. She believes that academic and social-emotional learning are equally essential and remains committed to strengthening schools and communities by supporting students, educators, and families—one relationship at a time.
Doctoral Dissertation Committee
Director
Andrew Wiley, Ph.D.
Professor
Special Education
School of Lifespan Development and Educational Sciences
College of Education and Human Services
Members
Maureen Blankemeyer, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Coordinator
School of Lifespan Development and Educational Sciences
Human Development and Family Science
Sheryl Chatfield, Ph.D., C.T.R.S
Associate Professor
College of Public Health and Health Sciences
Graduate Faculty Representative
Marty Jencius, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Counselor Education and Supervision
School of Lifespan Development and Educational Sciences
