Work

Teachers’ ethical decision-making under constraint: An interpretative phenomenological analysis of professional risk

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Ethical dilemmas are a routine feature of teaching in diverse and politically contested school contexts. Drawing on interpretative phenomenological analysis of interviews with seven experienced teachers, this study examines how ethical judgment is lived in practice. Participants rarely struggled to determine what was right; instead, they described tension between moral clarity and limited capacity to act amid institutional constraint, perceived risk, and prior consequences. These conditions shaped what actions felt professionally viable. Teachers responded by managing relationships, regulating emotion, and adapting to context while balancing care and risk. The findings specify how constraint operates within ethical judgment itself, shaping what teachers understand as possible in ethically consequential moments.

Source: Teaching and Teacher Education

DOI: 10.1016/j.tate.2026.105695

Author: Aaron A. Baker

Institution: Illinois State University

Language: English

Topic: Education, Philosophy, and Society

Subfield: Philosophy

Field: Arts and Humanities

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Quality education

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,380