Introduction and Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the mediating role of professional ethics in the relationship between quality of work life and mental health among elementary school principals in Kazerun County.
Methodology: This study was applied in terms of purpose and employed a descriptive-correlational, cross-sectional design. The statistical population consisted of all 110 elementary school principals in Kazerun County during the 2025–2026 academic year, all of whom were included in the study through a census method. Data were collected using the standardized Professional Ethics Questionnaire developed by Ghasemizad (2014), the Quality of Work Life Questionnaire developed by López et al. (2007), and Ryff’s Psychological Well-Being Scale (2002). The content validity of the instruments was confirmed by experts. Cronbach’s alpha coefficients for mental health, professional ethics, and quality of work life were 0.795, 0.801, and 0.800, respectively. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and structural equation modeling (SEM) with SPSS and PLS software.
Findings: The results indicated that quality of work life had a positive and significant relationship with mental health (path coefficient = 0.642, t = 36.988, p < 0.001). Quality of work life also had a positive and significant effect on professional ethics (path coefficient = 0.558, t = 13.714, p < 0.001), while professional ethics had a positive and significant relationship with mental health (path coefficient = 0.440, t = 23.453, p < 0.001). Furthermore, the indirect effect of quality of work life on mental health through professional ethics was positive and statistically significant (path coefficient = 0.245, t = 5.836, p < 0.001). Therefore, the mediating role of professional ethics was confirmed.
Conclusion: Based on the research findings, improving the quality of work life and strengthening professional ethics can provide the basis for improving the mental health of elementary school principals.