Creative Self-development and Methodological Culture as Drivers of Competitiveness in Teaching Staff

Abstract

In the context of continuous modernization of education, teacher competitiveness is viewed as a strategic resource for educational institutions. However, the personal and professional factors that form the foundation of this competitiveness remain understudied empirically. Two theoretical constructs stand out as potential candidates for these factors: methodological culture (the cognitive-reflective component) and the capacity for creative self-development (the motivational-dynamic component). The purpose of this study is to empirically substantiate the existence and nature of the relationship between teachers' competitiveness, their capacity for creative self-development, and their level of methodological culture. The study involved 50 teachers from Mineralnye Vody schools, divided into two contrasting groups: "Young Teachers"and "Experienced Teachers". The psychodiagnostic tools included: the "Teacher's Abilities for Creative Self-Development"method by I.V. Nikishina, the "Self-Assessment of a Teacher's Methodological Culture"test by L.G. Polyakova, and the competitiveness assessment method by V.I. Andreev. Statistical data processing was performed using Fisher's ϕ∗ test (angular transformation) to assess the reliability of differences in percentages; the critical significance level is p< 0.01.Statistically significant differences were found between the groups for all three parameters. In the "Experienced Teachers"group, 52% demonstrated a high level of creative self-development, 68% demonstrated a high level of methodological culture, and 60% demonstrated a high level of competitiveness. The effect of structural parallelism was discovered: synchronicity and unidirectionality of intergroup differences on all three scales, which empirically confirms their non-random conjugation. The data obtained support a three-component model in which competitiveness is an integrative outcome quality, while methodological culture and creative self-development are complementary predictor factors. The model describes a synergistic, rather than additive, interaction between these components: cognitive -reflexive potential without creative dynamics, and creative activity without methodological support, do not lead to high competitiveness. Developing a competitive teacher requires systemic, intra-organizational solutions aimed at the combined development of methodological culture and creative self-development, especially in the early stages of a professional career, where a "double deficit"in both components has been identified. Future research opportunities lie in the longitudinal verification of the causal model and the expansion of the sample's geographic scope.