The effect of authoritarian leadership on young nurses’ burnout: The mediating role of organizational climate and psychological capital

Abstract

Aim: To investigate the relationship between authoritarian leadership and burnout for young nurses in China, and the mediating role of organizational climate and psychological capital in this relationship. Background: As the backbone of clinical nursing, young nurses are prone to job burnout due to the tedious work and the intense work intensity of clinical nursing. It is critical to pay close attention to young nurse burnout to elevate nursing quality and patient satisfaction. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was carried out. From November to December 2022, 1,160 nurses from 4 hospitals in Henan, China took part in the survey. Pearson correlation analysis, descriptive statistics and structural equation model were used to analyze the existing data. Results: Authoritarian leadership can positively predict burnout (β = 0.260, P < 0.001) and negatively predict organizational climate (β = -0.270, P< 0.001) and psychological capital (β = -0.090, P < 0.001). Organizational climate positively predicted psychological capital (β = 0.880, P < 0.001) and negatively predicted burnout (β = -0.260, P < 0.001). Psychological capital negatively predicted burnout (β = 0.200, P < 0.001). The direct effect of authoritative leadership on burnout was 0.338. Conclusions: The impact of authoritarian leadership on young nurse burnout was mediated by organizational climate and psychological capital in a chain reaction, and examined the mediating model of authoritative leadership → organizational climate → psychological capital → burnout of young nurses. The results showed that nursing managers need to fully understand the disadvantages of authoritarian leadership and adjust related behaviors in time. Targeted management measures can be implemented from the organizational climate and psychological capital of young nurses to alleviate the burnout of nurses and improve the quality of nursing services.