Relationship Between Perceived Organizational Support And Professional Values of Nurses: Mediating Effect of Emotional Labor

Objectives: Perceived organizational support was a benefit for the work performance of nurses, which may affect emotional labor and the development of professional values. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between perceived organizational support and professional values of nurses, and the mediating role of emotional labor. Methods: : A questionnaire survey was conducted on 1096 nurses in 3 tertiary hospitals in Wuhan from October2020 to Januray2021. The data were collected by a questionnaire consisting of demographic characteristics, the Emotional Labor Scale for Nurses, the nurses' Perceived Organizational Support Scale, and the Nursing Professional Values Scale (NPVS-R). Spearmen correlation analysis was used to test the relationship between variables. Predictor effects were tested using hierarchical multiple regressions. The structural equation model (SEM) was used to test the mediation effect of emotional labor on the pathway from perceived organizational support to professional values. Results: : Perceived organizational support was positively correlated with emotional labor and professional values ( r =0.513, p ＜0.01； r =0.621, p ＜0.01, respectively). Emotional labor and perceived organizational support were positive predictors of professional values ( β =0.249, p ＜0.001; β =0.486, p ＜0.001, respectively). The association between perceived organizational support and professional values was mediated by emotional labor. Conclusions: : Results showed that the importance of improving perceived organizational support to encourage nurses to engage in emotional labor and promote professional values. Improving organizational support and training nurses to engage in emotional labor through providing multiple support systems, establishing reasonable incentive mechanisms, and training nurses to regulate emotions can be effective ways to promote nurses' professional values.