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 participated in the survey. Pearson correlation analysis, descriptive statistics and structural equation model were used to analyze the existing data. RESULTS: Authoritarian leadership (r = 0.502, P < 0.01) has a significant positive correlation with burnout, while organizational climate (r = -0.556, P < 0.01) and psychological capital (r = -0.538, P < 0.01) show significant negative correlations with burnout. Organizational climate and psychological capital serve as a chain mediating role between authoritarian leadership and burnout (β = 0.061, 95% CI (0.038, 0.086)). The total effect of authoritarian leadership on burnout (0.297) includes direct effect (0.338) and indirect effect (-0.042). CONCLUSIONS: Organizational climate and psychological capital play a chain mediating role in the relationship between authoritarian leadership and burnout. The results show that nursing managers need to fully understand the disadvantages of authoritarian leadership, adjust relevant behaviors in time, and learn to care for and respect employees. Additionally, from the hospital's organizational climate and young nurses' psychological capital, the implementation of targeted management measures to alleviate nurses' burnout and improve the quality of nursing service.