The mediating role of job satisfaction between psychological capital and work engagement among Chinese nurses during COVID-19 outbreak: A comparative study between nurse specialists and general nurses

Work engagement among nurses in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review

BACKGROUND

Despite nurses receiving education on how to respond during crises, the stress and demands arising from unprecedented situations, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, may affect their work engagement.

AIM

To appraise and synthesize studies examining work engagement among nurses in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

METHODS

It is a systematic review in which three databases were searched. Critical appraisal tools and PRISMA guidelines were used. Content analysis was performed.

ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS

Ethical approval was not required for this systematic review.

FINDINGS

A total of 21 studies were included. The results were classified into three categories: (1) levels and meanings of work engagement, (2) the relationship of work engagement with various factors, and (3) measures to enhance work engagement.

CONCLUSION

The review revealed that nurses' work engagement varied from moderate to high. Factors such as education level and work schedule flexibility influenced their engagement. Positive associations were found between work engagement and job satisfaction, intention to stay, and organizational support, while stress and workload showed negative relationships. The crucial role of health policymakers, hospital administrators, and nurse managers in acting ethically, creating favorable working conditions and fostering nurses' work engagement was emphasized.

Leveraging brand reputation for job engagement in the digital food delivery context

The rise of alternative work arrangements, driven by technological advancements, has become a significant aspect of the gig economy, particularly in the digital food delivery sector. The appeal of flexible work and instant deliveries offered by food delivery apps represents a key trend within the gig economy, and lay the forefront of gig workers' organizational commitment and job engagement. This study empirically examines the association between digital food delivery and the job engagement of gig workers. Although, for gig workers who seek opportunities on digital platforms, it is essential for them to become partner with a reputable brand mainly to showcase their best selves to potential employers. Hence, the study explores the effect of brand reputation as a moderator on the relationship between gig workers' organizational commitment and job engagement. The survey questionnaire was used to collect data from 354 gig workers in the digital food delivery industry, primarily from metropolitan areas. In this study, a two-step approach was employed to analyze the relationship between the variables. Initially, a theoretical model was developed based on the strategic paradigm found in the literature. Subsequently, structural equation model analysis was performed to identify significant associations between the variables. The results of the study demonstrated a significant positive relationship between digital food delivery and the job engagement of gig workers. Additionally, the moderating effect of brand reputation was observed, with a more substantial impact seen among workers employed by brands with a strong reputation. These findings suggest that digital food delivery platforms and brands should prioritize improving gig workers' job engagement. Finally, the study discussed implications and recommendations for future research.

The effect of work-family conflict on employee well-being among physicians: the mediating role of job satisfaction and work engagement

BACKGROUND

Work-family conflict among physicians has many adverse consequences, like reduced work engagement and impaired well-being. However, relatively little research has been conducted on the impact of work-family conflict on specific pathways of physician well-being. The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between work-family conflict and employee well-being among physicians and to explore the mediating role of job satisfaction and work engagement in this relationship.

METHODS

Using data from a cross-sectional survey of 2,480 physicians in Jilin Province, China, partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was applied in this study to examine the direct and indirect effects of work-family conflict on employee well-being and to assess the mediating roles of job satisfaction and work engagement therein.

RESULTS

The employee well-being score of physicians in Jilin Province was 5.16 ± 1.20. The univariate analysis results indicated significant disparities in employee well-being scores across different age groups, marital statuses, and professional titles. Work-family conflict was significantly negatively associated with employee well-being, while job satisfaction and work engagement were significantly positively associated with employee well-being. In addition, job satisfaction and work engagement were found to mediate the association between work-family conflict and employee well-being, and work engagement was considered to mediate the association between job satisfaction and employee well-being.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study confirms that work-family conflict negatively affects physicians' employee well-being. Moreover, our investigation revealed that the association between work-family conflict and employee well-being is influenced by both job satisfaction and work engagement and that work engagement plays a mediating role in the link between job satisfaction and employee well-being. Therefore, we propose that hospital administrators should rationally allocate organizational resources and develop manageable schedules to enhance physicians' employee well-being.

The effect of career compromise on nurses' turnover intention: the mediating role of job satisfaction

AIM

We aimed to examine the relationships among nurses' career compromise, job satisfaction, and turnover intention and the mediating role of job satisfaction in the relationship between career compromise and turnover intention.

BACKGROUND

Nurses are prone to career compromise when there is a discrepancy between the reality of their job and their personal career expectations due to personal or family factors. High levels of career compromise may have a significant impact on turnover intentions through low job satisfaction, thereby affecting the stability of the nursing workforce. There is a paucity of research on the impact of nurses' career compromise on turnover intentions.

METHOD

This was a cross-sectional research design of nurses in hospitals in Guangdong Province using a convenience sampling method. The Career Compromise Scale (CCS), Job Satisfaction Scale (JSS), and Turnover Intention Scale (TIS) were used. The obtained data were analyzed through descriptive statistics, Spearman's correlation coefficient, and the mediating effect of perceived organizational support was tested through the PROCESS macro mediation model in SPSS.

RESULTS

Data from 821 nurses who met the inclusion criteria were analyzed. The total score of nurses' turnover intention was 14.68 ± 4.32. Spearman's correlation analysis showed that career compromise was negatively correlated with job satisfaction (r = -0.594, p < 0.01), job satisfaction was negatively correlated with turnover intention (r = -0.471, p < 0.01), and career compromise was positively correlated with turnover intention (r = 0.544, p < 0.01). The mediating effect of job satisfaction on the relationship between career compromise and turnover intention has been demonstrated. The mediating effect is significant, with a value of 0.056, representing 25.71% of the total effect.

CONCLUSIONS

The turnover intention of nurses in Guangdong Province is high. Job satisfaction mediated the relationship between career compromise and turnover intention. This study further enriches JD-R theory and COR theory and provides new perspectives for nurse managers to develop intervention strategies to stabilize the nursing workforce and reduce turnover.

The influencing factors of nurses' job engagement in tertiary, A grade hospitals in East China: A cross-sectional study

AIM

To explore the effects of demographic characteristics, mental workload, and Adversity quotient (AQ) on the job engagement of nurses in East China.

DESIGN

A quantitative and cross-sectional study.

METHOD

The survey collected questionnaire data on mental workload, adversity quotient, and job engagement from 473 nurses selected working in 12 Grade-A tertiary hospitals based on informed consent in East China between July 2020 and March 2021.

RESULTS

The total score of mental workload was 78.24 ± 11.65, the adversity quotient score was 128.26 ± 15.84, job engagement score was 42.32 ± 7.79. Job engagement has a remarkable positive correlation with adversity quotient (r = 0.613, p<0.001), and a negative correlation with mental workload (r = -0.499, p<0.001). Mental workload has an apparent negative correlation with adversity quotient (r = -0.291, p<0.001). Labor-management relationship with current organization, department, study to get a degree or diploma in spare time, attitude towards a career in Nursing, attitude towards the current career position, satisfaction with marriage, social support, load feelings, self-assessment, control, and endurance could predict 70.9% of job engagement of nurses.

CONCLUSIONS

The mental workload of nurses was higher, the AQ was at a medium level, and the job engagement of nurses was also slightly higher. Labor-management relationship with current organization, department, study to get a degree or diploma in spare time, attitude towards a career in Nursing, attitude towards the current career position, satisfaction with marriage, social support, load feelings, self-assessment, control, and endurance had predictive effects on nurses' job engagement. It is necessary to take a variety of measures according to the social-demographic characteristics, improve the adversity quotient, and evaluate the mental workload correctly, to improve the job engagement of nurses.

IMPACT

The epidemic situation and other emergencies make the work pressure of nurses in Grade-A tertiary hospitals increase suddenly. It should pay attention to the influence of different demographic factors, and pay attention to the correct guidance of work demand-mental workload, as well as the cultivation, and improvement of job resource-AQ, which can improve the job engagement of nurses to some extent.

PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION

No patient or public contribution.

Linkage between role stress and work engagement among specialty nurses: a cross-sectional study of China

OBJECTIVES

Specialty nurses play a significant role in improving patient care; however, little is known about the factors affecting their work engagement. This study aimed to explore the relationship between role stress and work engagement among specialty nurses in China.

DESIGN

A descriptive, cross-sectional study was applied in this study.

SETTING

The study was conducted in the Henan Provincial People's Hospital in China.

PARTICIPANTS

From March to April 2023, we conducted a cross-sectional descriptive study, using convenience sampling to recruit 972 specialty nurses from 42 specialised fields in China.

METHODS

An online questionnaire survey was conducted using the Basic Information Questionnaire, Role Stress Scale and Specialty Nurse Work Engagement Scale. The collected data were analysed by using SPSS 21.0 software. The differences in total work engagement scores between subgroups were investigated using a single-factor analysis of variance. A Spearman's rank correlation and a Pearson's correlation were used to determine the relationship between general information, role stress and work engagement. A ridge regression analysis explored the impact of role stress on work engagement.

RESULTS

The total score of role stress was (52.44±19.92) and the total score of work engagement was (140.27±17.76). Among the scores of various dimensions of specialty nurses' work engagement, the standardised score for work attitude was the highest (4.54±0.56), followed by work values (4.46±0.64); the standardised score of work enthusiasm and focus was the lowest (4.22±0.64). Additionally, role ambiguity (r=-0.352, p<0.001), role conflict (r=-0.367, p<0.001), role overload (r=-0.313, p<0.001) and role stress (r=-0.380, p<0.001) were negatively correlated with work engagement. The total score of role stress was negatively correlated with the total score of work engagement; the results of ridge regression analysis showed that age, professional title and role stress explain 14.6% of the variance in work engagement.

CONCLUSION

Our study found that specialty nurses' work engagement was mid-level or above. Role stress was significantly and negatively correlated with specialty nurses' work engagement, which was an important predictor of their work engagement. Nursing managers should instate effective measures to reduce role stress, thereby increasing work engagement.

Updating Factors Influencing Nurse Work Engagement in the Hospital Settings: A Systematic Review

Background

Understanding the factors influencing work engagement among nurses is crucial for ensuring high-quality care and positive patient outcomes. Despite numerous factors associated with nurse work engagement, many were explored before the pandemic, potentially overlooking aspects relevant to the current context.

Aim

To explore and update factors related to nurse work engagement in the new normal era.

Design

Systematic review.

Data Sources

The search was restricted to articles published from 2019 to 2024 in CINAHL, PubMed, Scopus, ScienceDirect, Web of Science, and ProQuest, with full English text. The search was conducted from September 13th to 15th, 2023. Quantitative research articles that examined factors related to work engagement were included.

Review Methods

Data extraction, quality appraisal, and data analysis were performed in all included studies. Manual content analysis method was used to classify and group the factors.

Results

Sixty-one research articles were included in the final review. Five key groups of factors were generated from content analysis, including 1) individual-related factors, 2) organizational-related factors, 3) job and role-related factors, 4) work-life balance, and 5) work environment.

Conclusion

Understanding and addressing these multifaceted factors holistically is essential to develop strategies to sustain optimal engagement levels among nursing staff and improve overall patient care outcomes. Further studies are needed to confirm the findings.

Psychological Capital and Turnover Intention: The Mediating Role of Burnout among Healthcare Professionals

Psychological capital (PsyCap) has been identified as an individual's positive psychological state of development that can help to reduce negative organizational outcomes. However, there is still a gap in understanding how PsyCap influences different aspects of organizations. This study investigates the mediating role of burnout in the relationship between PsyCap and turnover intentions among healthcare professionals. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 320 healthcare professionals. The estimation of the relationships between PsyCap, burnout, and turnover intentions was obtained through structural equation modelling (SEM). A mediation analysis was carried out using bootstrapping procedures. The results show that burnout has a significant and positive effect on turnover intention and PsyCap has a significant and negative effect on burnout. Moreover, burnout fully mediates the relationship between PsyCap and turnover intention. These findings suggest that PsyCap can effectively reduce negative outcomes like burnout, but its positive impact may be limited when considering other outcomes such as turnover intention.

When there is no justice, we need an old HERO. The trickle-down effect of psychological capital: the moderating role of organizational justice and leaders' age

The objective of the study was to explore the impact of leaders' ages and followers' perceptions of organizational justice (POJ) on the transfer of psychological capital (PsyCap) from leaders to followers, particularly examining how employees' resilience is influenced by leaders' PsyCap. While some evidence exists regarding PsyCap's trickle-down effect, the specific circumstances triggering this phenomenon remain unclear. This study investigates the relationship between followers' and leaders' PsyCap, employing the Social Cognitive Theory and considering the moderating effects of leaders' age and POJ. The study focused on leader-follower dyads within a randomly selected sample of 406 businesses, encompassing 812 respondents. The survey investigation utilized the CAPI approach. The hypothesized model underwent testing through multilevel dyadic regression analysis, employing an actor-partner interdependence model. The findings support two moderators -employees' POJ and managers' age - and highlight the cross-over effect of PsyCap. Specifically, a stronger trickle-down link is observed when a leader is older and operating within a low POJ environment. Additionally, the study revealed a positive correlation between employees' PsyCap and POJ. The development of POJ enhances employees' PsyCap and resilience, while leaders' PsyCap may compensate for organizational POJ deficiencies. This study is among the first to explore PsyCap's moderators, specifically analyzing leaders' ages and POJ as factors influencing the cross-over effect of PsyCap. By identifying previously unrecognized moderators affecting the cross-over PsyCap effect, this research contributes significantly to the PsyCap literature.

Improving Organizational Commitment among Healthcare Employees in Angola: The Role of Psychological Capital and Perceived Transformational Leadership

While previous studies conducted in sub-Saharan African countries have focused on verifying standards of clinical care and assessing challenges faced by healthcare professionals, the present study fills a gap in the literature in that it explores the factors that may drive the organizational commitment of healthcare professionals in Angola. This study aimed to analyze the relationship between psychological capital and organizational commitment through perceived transformational leadership. Therefore, using the quantitative methodology, a self-report questionnaire was applied to 342 healthcare professionals (174 male, 168 female) from different public and private hospitals located in three large cities in Angola. The results confirmed that psychological capital is positively related to affective commitment and that perceived transformational leadership is a mediating variable of this relationship. Therefore, this study highlights the role of psychological capital and perceived transformational leadership in improving affective commitment in challenging environments.

Registered nurses' psychological capital: A scoping review

AIMS

The aim was to examine the extent and scope of empirical research concerning registered nurses' psychological capital.

BACKGROUND

In a time of global nursing shortage, identifying variables that could positively contribute to the retention of the nursing workforce is essential. Prior research has shown that psychological capital correlates positively with employees' better performance and well-being.

DESIGN

A scoping review.

DATA SOURCES

A systematic literature search was conducted in the following databases: PubMed, CINAHL, PsycINFO, Web of Science and Scopus covering the period from 1 January 2005 to 7 May 2023.

REVIEW METHODS

The JBI methodological guidance for scoping reviews was followed. The results were summarized narratively.

RESULTS

A total of 111 studies reported in 114 peer-reviewed articles were included. Studies were carried out across 20 countries, with the majority from China (45), Australia (nine), Pakistan (nine), Canada (eight), South Korea (eight) and the United States (eight). A positive correlation was found between registered nurses' psychological capital and desirable work-related outcomes, such as work engagement, commitment and retention intention.

CONCLUSION

A comprehensive overview of research evidence suggests that psychological capital is associated with many positive work-related outcomes and might therefore be a valuable resource for reducing nurse turnover.

Latent profiles of ethical climate and nurses' service behavior

BACKGROUND

Hospital ethical climate has important implications for clinical nurses' service behavior; however, the relationships are complicated by the fact that five types of ethical climate (caring, law and code, rules, instrumental, and independence) can be combined differently according to their level and shape differences. Recent developments in person-centered methods (e.g., latent profile analysis (LPA)) have helped to address these complexities.

AIM

From a person-centered perspective, this study explored the distinct profiles of hospital ethical climate and then examined the relationships of the profiles with clinical nurses' service behavior (both in-role and extra-role service behavior).

RESEARCH DESIGN

A quantitative study was conducted using cluster random sampling. Latent profile analysis and binary coded hexadecimal (BCH) analysis were conducted using Mplus 8.2.

PARTICIPANTS AND RESEARCH CONTEXT

A total of 871 clinical nurses in China were surveyed using the Ethical Climate Scale and Nurses' Service Behavior Questionnaire.

ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS

Ethical approval was obtained from the IRB of the First Affiliated Hospital of Jinan University (No. KY-2020-090).

RESULTS

A four-profile hospital ethical climate model provided the best fit for the data. The four different profiles not only varied in level, but also in shape: high normative and low egoism (45.8%), high ethical climate (19.9%), low ethical climate (3.6%), and moderate ethical climate (30.8%). These profiles differentially predicted clinical nurses' overall, in-role, and extra-role service behaviors.

CONCLUSIONS

The results reveal new insights into the nature of hospital ethical climate and how different clinical nurses in these profiles can be best managed to accomplish different forms of service behavior.

Relationships Between Perceived Organizational Support, Psychological Capital and Work Engagement Among Chinese Infection Control Nurses

Background

Few studies have focused on the work engagement of infection control nurses (ICNs). The perceived organizational support (POS) and psychological capital (PsyCap) might be important factors influencing ICNs' work engagement. Moreover, PsyCap might play a mediating role in the relationship between POS and work engagement.

Objective

This study aims to clarify the relationships among POS, PsyCap and work engagement of Chinese ICNs.

Methods

A cross-sectional design was performed to collect data on 7382 ICNs from 20 provinces in China. Data collection was conducted by an online questionnaire, including questions about demographics, the Chinese version of the Utrecht work engagement scale (UWES), the Chinese version of the psychological capital questionnaire (PCQ) and the perceived organizational support scale for medical staff. Univariate analysis, the Spearman correlation method and the mediating effect test were conducted.

Results

The work engagement was at a relatively high level, with a total score of 80.87 ± 14.95. The total scores of POS and PsyCap scale were 41.45 ± 7.37 and 89.14 ± 9.06 respectively, both of which were at the upper-middle level. Work engagement was positively associated with both POS and PsyCap (both P<0.01). Furthermore, the mediating effect of PsyCap on the relationship between POS and work engagement was 0.394, the total effect was 0.443, and the ratio of mediating effect to total effect was 88.94%.

Conclusion

The findings suggest that both POS and PsyCap can directly increase the work engagement of the Chinese ICNs. Besides, POS can indirectly improve work engagement, partially through PsyCap. Therefore, enhancing POS and PsyCap could be effective in improving the work engagement of ICNs.