The Influence of Psychological Capital and Work Engagement on Intention to Remain of New Graduate Nurses

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to explore the influence of new graduate nurses' psychological capital (PsyCap) and work engagement (WE) on their intention to remain in nursing. BACKGROUND: New graduate nurses experience stressful work environments, emotional exhaustion, and burnout. Positive psychological resources, such as PsyCap and WE, may promote the retention of new graduate nurses. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey design was used. A structured questionnaire was answered by 156 new graduate nurses working at 2 tertiary hospitals and 1 university hospital in South Korea. RESULTS: The intention to remain among new graduate nurses was correlated significantly with PsyCap and WE. A hierarchical regression of intention to remain against general characteristics, PsyCap, and WE explained 33.5% of intention to remain of new graduate nurses. Psychological capital and WE were influential in new graduate nurses' intention to remain. CONCLUSIONS: Organizational attention is needed to foster PsyCap and WE to strengthen new graduate nurses' intention to remain in nursing.