Browsing by Author "Stenberg, Saara"

Aims. Well-be and qualified early childhood education professionals ensure the quality of early childhood education. Pedagogical leadership that notes the fulfillment of psychological basic needs has the crucial role. Recently, however, leadership in early childhood education has greatly diversified. The purpose of this study was to clarify how the pedagogical leadership in early childhood education enables the fulfillment of the psychological basic needs of early childhood education professionals in their work. The aim of this thesis was to study the experiences of early childhood education professionals, how the fulfillment of psychological basic needs manifests in their work. In addition, the aim of this study was to find out the promotional and preventive factors related to the fulfillment of basic needs. Methods. This thesis is a qualitative case study. A theme interview was used as the data collection method. The framework of the interview was based on an interview formula measuring the fulfillment of psychological basic needs at work. Five early childhood education professionals were interviewed for this study. Theory–based content analysis was used as a method of analysis. Results and conclusions. The results showed that early childhood education professionals felt that psychological basic needs were filled quite well in their work. Fulfillment of psychological basic needs was associated with good pedagogical leadership. Based on the experiences of early childhood education professionals, the success of pedagogical leadership and thus supporting the fulfillment of the psychological basic needs of early childhood educators requires resources and leadership skills. According to the results, it is important to pay attention to the quality of the interaction, time available for the interaction, and the balance between work tasks and working hours. To support the fulfillment of the psychological basic needs of early childhood education professionals is essential to draw attention to adequate resourcing and the development of pedagogical leadership skills.