The mediating role of psychological capital on the relationship between authentic leadership and innovative behaviour among Chinese nurses

Abstract

Abstract Aim To explore the mediating role of psychological capital between authentic leadership and innovative behaviour among Chinese nurses. Design A cross‐sectional study. Methods In December 2021, online surveys were delivered among nurses from 37 hospitals in Anhui Province by convenience sampling approach. The data was collected using the Chinese version of the Authentic Leadership Questionnaire, Nurse Psychological Capital Questionnaire and Nurse Innovative Behaviour Scale. The structural equation model and bootstrap test examined the mediating role of psychological capital between authentic leadership and innovative behaviour. Results 3495 Chinese nurses from 37 Anhui Province hospitals participated in this study. The mean item score of authentic leadership was 3.25 (SD 0.83), psychological capital was 4.85 (SD 0.89), and innovative behaviour was 2.82 (SD 0.84). Authentic leadership perceived by nurses, psychological capital, and innovative behaviour were statistically significant and positively correlated with each other (r = 0.524 ~ 0.806, p < 0.01). Psychological capital significantly mediated the association between authentic leadership and innovative behaviour (β = 0.449, p < 0.001), and its mediating effect accounted for 76.75% of the total effect. Conclusion Results suggest the importance of developing nurse managers' authentic leadership to foster nurses' psychological capital and innovation behaviour.

Keywords

• authentic leadership
• innovative behaviour
• nurse
• psychological capital
• structural equation model