127 Summary and general discussion testing of the theoretical model. To address this limitation, future research should consider integrating a mid-treatment assessment. Such an inclusion would offer a more nuanced understanding of the order of changes within the mediation process, thereby enhancing the comprehensiveness and validity of our findings. An aspect to consider for further research is the homogeneity of the study population, as all groups in the current study consisted of teachers from urban-centric schools. This may constrain the generalizability of our findings, considering the potential regional variations in perceived stress (Abel and Sewell, 1999). Additionally, all groups were taught by the same mindfulness teacher which further limits the generalizability of our results. To address these limitations, future research should aim to diversify the geographical regions from which teachers are recruited and include more mindfulness teachers. Last, given the limited research focusing on stress reduction among elementary school teachers, dedicated studies addressing their unique stressors are needed. Research should delve into methods specifically designed to alleviate stress in this population, such as ACT, which could provide valuable insights. Comparing different therapeutic approaches, such as ACT, CBT, and meditation, could help identify the most effective methods for stress reduction among elementary school teachers. Specific attention could also be given to starting elementary school teachers. These teachers often perceive themselves as ill-prepared for their roles, heightening their concerns and fears (Richardson, 2014). Starting teachers often grapple with feelings of confusion, self-doubt, and uncertainty (Buckwort, 2017; Le Cornu, 2013), which contributes to their increased vulnerability to job-related stress. Although exploratory moderation analyses within this thesis have not found any indications that newer teachers (< 5 years) benefit more from MBSR, possibly due to limited statistical power, the research by Roeser et al. (2022) does provide some indications of this. Implications for practice Opportunities and obstacles in teaching mindfulness to elementary school teachers Teaching mindfulness to teachers has shown remarkable potential for enhancing teacher well-being and fostering a positive classroom climate. Both our pilot research and RCT study have revealed a strong willingness among teachers to voluntarily participate in mindfulness programs, highlighting a perceived need for such initiatives and demonstrating low drop-out rates. While numerous studies have delved into the impact of voluntary versus mandatory participation in training on motivation and outcomes, our study concerned only voluntarily participating elementary school teachers. Previous research shows that voluntary participants demonstrated higher levels of autonomous motivation compared to their mandated counterparts (e.g., Curado et al., 2015; Yardley, 2003). However, other research also suggests that mandatory training leads to increased motivation levels and effectiveness (e.g., Baldwin et al., 1991; Tsai and Tai, 2003), with 7
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