Abstract:

Introduction:
Highly sensitive people (HSP) are characterized by different aspects that include: a great awareness of subtleties, overstimulation, depth processing of information and high emotional reactivity. HSP in their work environment will show a series of characteristics that, if properly understood, can be of great benefit for the enterprise and for the rest of the workers. It is also important to understand how employers from the areas of education perceive and manage HSP at work. The objective of the research was to explore the perceptions and experiences of teachers professionals with HSP.

Method:
A qualitative descriptive design was performed using a thematic approach for data analysis. A total of 14 participants were recruited in 3 focus gropus. The majority were female (n=8) with a mean age of 41.94 years old. Regarding their educational levelfour of them have reached the level of Master and the rest had a Ph.D. With regard to their profession, four of them were teachers from primary education and ten were university teachers and researchers. All focus gropus were performed online through the Google Meet platform and were recorded in audio and in video to make the verbatim transcripts. For the thematic analysis the proposal by Braun and Clarke was followed using an inductive coding procedure and integrating the codes into initial themes that were triangulated between the researchers.

Results:
A total of 5 main themes were identified after the analysis:
(1) Characteristics and management of HSP,
(2) Motivation of HSP,
(3) Importance of relations,
(4) Physical working conditions and
(5) Implications for Management.

HSP were perceived as employees and students with a high capacity to sacrify themselves and with high responsability despite they may show strong emotional reactions to some situations at work. Participants outlined the importance of reinforce them and to give them tools to regulate their sensitivity. Their emotional abilities help them to connect and establish emotional bonds with other partners.

Conclusions:
The work of HSPs can be benefial and they themselves can be dedicated and committed employees. Educational implications and recommendations, based on the results of the research, will be presented.

Keywords:

Highly sensitive people, teachers, education, evaluation.