Heterogeneous Profiles of Korean Teachers’ Multicultural Teaching Efficacy and Implications for Social Sustainability

As classrooms become increasingly diverse, achieving equitable and inclusive education is central to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 4.7, and to advancing social sustainability in education. Teachers’ multicultural teaching efficacy is a key psychological resource shaping inclusive classroom practice. This study conceptualizes multicultural teaching efficacy as a multidimensional belief system and adopts a person-centered approach to identify latent efficacy profiles among Korean lower secondary school teachers. Using data from the OECD Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) 2024, latent profile analysis was conducted based on seven efficacy indicators, with teachers’ social and emotional learning self-efficacy (TSEL-SE) and participation in multicultural education-related professional learning included as covariates. Five distinct efficacy profiles were identified, revealing heterogeneity in both level and configuration. TSEL-SE consistently predicted profile membership, whereas the effects of professional learning varied across profiles and were strongest among teachers with high TSEL-SE, indicating a conditional interaction effect between psychological and experiential resources. Notably, over one-third of teachers belonged to a structurally low efficacy profile, indicating systemic vulnerability. These findings highlight the importance of differentiated and emotionally responsive teacher education strategies for advancing inclusive practice and contributing to SDG 4.7 and broader social sustainability goals.