This systematic review synthesizes 44 empirical studies (2021–2025) on teacher job performance across primary,

secondary, and tertiary education worldwide. This study maps determinants into three blocks: individual

(motivation, self-efficacy, satisfaction), organizational (leadership, supervision, culture, climate, compensation,

appraisal, work–life), and contextual (policy, technology, telework). Using a pre-registered protocol, dual

Keywords: Teacher job performance; Instructional leadership; School climate; Self-efficacy; Compensation and

work–life; Systematic review

Teacher job performance shapes instructional quality and student outcomes across primary, secondary, and

tertiary education, yet its drivers span individual, organizational, and contextual layers. Leadership and school

climate repeatedly associate with higher task and citizenship performance, and can translate into improved

achievement through the physical environment (Dutta & Sahney, 2022; Wardana et al., 2024). Transformational

and instructional leadership, supervision, and managerial competence link to better teacher productivity and

performance (Purwanto, 2022; Firmansyah et al., 2022; Singerin, 2021; Azainil et al., 2021). Individual

mechanisms such as self-efficacy, motivation, satisfaction, and engagement also predict performance, although

be weak or insignificant in some school contexts; salary satisfaction and credible appraisal matter in university

settings (Zikanga et al., 2021; Sancoko et al., 2023; Sinniah et al., 2022). Work–life balance supports

performance in some samples, but family–work conflict is harmful and balance is not uniformly predictive (Al-

Alawi et al., 2021; Ridwan et al., 2022; Kahpi et al., 2024). Several studies note contextual novelty or limited

local evidence, underscoring fragmentation across tiers and regions (Dutta & Sahney, 2022; Puruwita et al.,

2022). This literature review synthesizes 44 empirical studies published from 2021 to 2025 to identify recurrent

determinants and the mediating or moderating mechanisms that link them to teacher performance across tiers,

and to develop a cross-tier benchmark for leaders and policymakers worldwide.

Teacher job performance is uneven across primary, secondary, and tertiary education, with fragmented

mediators, including happiness and engagement, which institutions often underutilize (Obrad & Circa, 2021;

Bangun et al., 2021). Without a cross-tier synthesis, policymakers, leaders, and higher education managers lack

levers to improve learning and equity, which creates urgency for an evidence map (Sinniah et al., 2022; Subarto

et al., 2021).

1. RO1: To synthesize empirical evidence on determinants of teacher job performance across primary,

secondary, and tertiary settings.

2. RO2: To map reported mediators and moderators, assess their consistency across tiers, and propose an

evidence-informed conceptual framework.

2021 to 2025, which may omit earlier or non-English evidence while keeping the synthesis contemporary.

Second, the scope centers on empirical studies of teacher job performance across primary, secondary, and tertiary

tiers, so highly specialized subfields or qualitative case work may be underrepresented. Third, heterogeneity in

constructs, instruments, and contexts limits direct comparability and precludes a full rigorous meta-analysis.

Fourth, reliance on indexed databases and published articles may miss gray literature or in-progress work.

Finally, while this study maps determinants and mechanisms, no causal generalization across countries is

claimed. These constraints are modest and transparent, and they guide cautious interpretation and clear avenues

for future updates.

Underlying Theories

settings (Subarto et al., 2021; Zamin & Hussin, 2021; Wardana et al., 2024). Compensation, income security,

and performance appraisal connect to performance and satisfaction with mixed magnitudes, which points to

contextual contingencies (Ridwan et al., 2022; Zikanga et al., 2021; Sancoko et al., 2023; Fitriady et al., 2023;

Sriadmitum, 2023).

Individual-level perspectives emphasize motivation, job satisfaction, self-efficacy, engagement, and affect.

Several studies model satisfaction and motivation as pathways to performance, with some null or weak links that

vary by setting and variable position (Sudirman et al., 2021; Novitasari et al., 2021; Lie et al., 2021; Ramadona

et al., 2021; Gusriani et al., 2022; Arifin, 2021). Self-efficacy emerges repeatedly as a robust predictor or

moderator of performance and as a target of leadership influence (Akman, 2021; Sadeghi et al., 2021; Singerin,

2021; Sinniah et al., 2022). Work-life interface and stress models appear in school and higher education, with

At the individual level, empirical findings foreground motivation, job satisfaction, self-efficacy, work

engagement, and affect. Motivation and satisfaction are modeled as antecedents or mediators of performance,

with some paths non-significant in certain settings (Sudirman et al., 2021; Novitasari et al., 2021; Lie et al.,

2021; Ramadona et al., 2021; Gusriani et al., 2022). Self-efficacy predicts performance and sometimes moderates

other links (Akman, 2021; Sadeghi et al., 2021; Singerin, 2021; Sinniah et al., 2022). Dispositions toward loving

pedagogy, emotion regulation, and self-efficacy relate to engagement, which supports performance claims in

allied work (Wang et al., 2025). Happiness mediates between digital attitudes and job performance among

lecturers, and partially between satisfaction and performance (Bangun et al., 2021). Telework context highlights

perceived student engagement as a driver of teacher engagement (Obrad & Circa, 2021). Work experience

through climate and teacher in-role performance toward achievement (Dutta & Sahney, 2022). Transformational

leadership, competence, and self-efficacy relate positively to performance in primary settings, and a meta-

analysis links transformational leadership to satisfaction, commitment, and self-efficacy (Purwanto, 2022;

Firmansyah et al., 2022). Managerial competence and teacher discipline predict productivity, and academic

supervision links to competence and performance with efficacy moderation in part (Azainil et al., 2021; Singerin,

2021). University and school studies place climate, culture, and commitment as pathways to satisfaction and

performance (Subarto et al., 2021; Zamin & Hussin, 2021; Wardana et al., 2024). Compensation, appraisal, and

income security show positive associations in several cases, though magnitudes vary by indicator and context

(Ridwan et al., 2022; Zikanga et al., 2021; Sancoko et al., 2023; Fitriady et al., 2023). Work–life balance and

family–work dynamics appear as relevant organizational conditions, with satisfaction and performance effects

school and district studies with varied direct effects on performance and satisfaction (Novitasari et al., 2021;

Sriadmitum, 2023). Certification and principal supervision represent oversight context with indirect and direct

routes through satisfaction and motivation (Sudirman et al., 2021; Lie et al., 2021). Broader institutional and HR

configurations in higher education, including diversity climate and standardized practices, align with job

satisfaction and performance links among lecturers and staff (Tunio et al., 2021; Mustafa et al., 2021). Reviews

of internal versus external performance factors further situate individual and contextual elements for teaching

work worldwide (Wulan, 2024).

Table 1: Evidence Landscape of Included Studies, 2021–2025 (n = 44)

2024; Ramadona et al., 2021; Sudadi et al., 2023).

context (Subarto et al., 2021; Zamin & Hussin, 2021; Dutta & Sahney, 2022; Bangun et al., 2021; Novitasari et

al., 2021; Ramadona et al., 2021; Sinniah et al., 2022; Kahpi et al., 2024). Moderators include self-efficacy, job

satisfaction, and work experience, as well as stress interacting with demographic factors; several moderation

tests are partial or null (Lumanug II & Dimla, 2021; Singerin, 2021; Layek & Koodamara, 2024; Aduma et al.,

2022; Al-Alawi et al., 2021). Effects for compensation, basic pay, bonuses, appraisal, and work–life balance are

mixed across settings, which underscores contextual dependency rather than a single pattern (Ridwan et al.,

2022; Zikanga et al., 2021; Sancoko et al., 2023; Fitriady et al., 2023; Sriadmitum, 2023). Telework and digital

contexts surface engagement and emotion regulation as salient correlates of performance-adjacent outcomes

(Obrad & Circa, 2021; Wang et al., 2025).

Okolocha et al., 2021; Baety, 2021; Rahman & Indahyanti, 2021). Additional variability appears in innovation-

transfer motivation, lecturer-focused models, and null differences in satisfaction drivers (Stumbrienė et al., 2024;

Mustafa et al., 2021; Dunggio, 2021; Sulistiarini, 2024).

This study applies a systematic review of 44 empirical papers from 2021 to 2025 across primary, secondary, and

tertiary tiers. Inclusion requires an empirical design, teacher or lecturer samples, job performance outcomes, and

English language. Searches cover Scopus, Web of Science, ERIC, and Google Scholar. After deduplication,

titles, abstracts, and full texts are screened against a written protocol. A piloted codebook specifies tier, context,

constructs, instruments, outcomes, and mechanisms. Study quality is appraised on sampling clarity,

measurement validity, and reporting transparency, with a numeric score stored for each study.

benchmark table and propositions are compiled to feed directly into the Findings and Conclusion.