A cross-sectional survey on consequences of nurses' burnout: moderating role of organizational politics

AimThe aim of the study was to assess whether perceptions of organizational politics (defined as self-serving behaviours at the expense of others) influence the prospective associations between nurses' burnout and its consequences, namely, intention to quit and neglect of work. BackgroundResearchers have previously investigated relationships between nurses' burnout, intention to quit, neglect of work and perceptions of organizational politics in different research models and from different perspectives. As far as we know, no studies have considered whether nurses' perceptions of organizational politics moderate the influence of burnout. DesignA cross-sectional survey using self-report questionnaires. MethodData were collected by questionnaire from a sample of 456 nurses from six private hospitals in Ankara, Turkey in March 2015. Four different previously designed scales were used to measure research variables (burnout, intention to quit, neglect of work and perceptions of organizational politics). Following confirmatory validity and reliability analyses of data collection instruments, descriptive statistics for each research variable were analysed. Structural regression models were created to assess relationships among variables. FindingsBurnout resulted in intention to quit and neglect. Intention to quit partially mediated the association between burnout and neglect. Burnout gave rise to intention to quit slightly more strongly in nurses who had greater perceptions of organizational politics. ConclusionThis study uncovers and emphasizes the moderating role of perceptions of organizational politics in consequences of burnout. This may help hospital managers and nurses to improve costs, efficiency, satisfaction and productivity.