Workplace empowerment, incivility and burnout : impact on staff nurse recruitment and retention outcomes

Nurse turnover may be related to an unsatisfying work environment including uncivil behaviors, work distress, and job dissatisfaction in the workplace (Spence Laschinger, Leiter, Day & Gilin, 2009). The purpose of this study is to examine the influence of empowering work conditions and workplace incivility on nurses’ experiences of burnout and retention. This is a replication of Spence Laschinger et al’s. (2009) study. The sample will include 50 registered nurses from two Indiana hospitals (Indiana University Health Bloomington and Indiana University Health Martinsville). The theoretical framework is Kanter’s Structural Theory of Organizational Behavior (1977, 1993). The Conditions of Work Effectiveness Questionnaire (CWEQ-II); the Workplace Incivility Scale (Cortina, Magley, Williams, & Langhout, 2001); the Emotional Exhaustion and Cynicism subscales of the Maslach Burnout Inventory-General Survey (MBIGS) (Schaufeli, Leiter, Maslach, & Jackson, 1996); the Affective Commitment Scale (Meyer, Allen, & Smith, 1993); and the Turnover Intentions (Kelloway, Gottlieb, & Barham, 1999) will be used as survey questionnaires. Findings may identify managerial strategies that empower nurses in professional practice and may be helpful in preventing workplace incivility, and burnout.School of NursingThesis (M.S.