The relationship between servant leadership and nurses' in-role performance: The sequential mediating effects of job autonomy and emotional exhaustion

AIMS

Drawing on the conservation of resources theory, this study examines the underlying process through which servant leadership is associated with nurses' in-role performance. Specifically, we test the indirect effect of servant leadership on in-role performance via a sequential mediating mechanism of job autonomy and emotional exhaustion.

DESIGN

A time-lagged design was implemented using data gathered from two-wave online surveys (1 week apart) of registered nurses from Jiangsu Province, China.

METHODS

Between September 2022 and February 2023, we used Wenjuanxing and Credma, which are two powerful and user-friendly data collection platforms, to distribute online surveys to potential participants. We received a total of 220 usable responses and employed the PROCESS Model 4 and Model 6 to assess our proposed hypotheses.

RESULTS

Our proposed model was supported. Servant leadership has a positive indirect effect on nurses' in-role performance through job autonomy and emotional exhaustion. Job autonomy has a negative effect on emotional exhaustion. Additionally, job autonomy mediates the negative relationship between servant leadership and emotional exhaustion.

CONCLUSION

The present research extends existing nursing studies by unravelling the complex mechanisms underlying the relationship between servant leadership and nurses' in-role performance. Our study also identifies the underlying mechanism of how servant leadership mitigates emotional exhaustion by supporting nurses' job autonomy.

IMPACT

The sequential mediation results provide us with a more fine-grained understanding of the relationship between servant leadership and nurses' in-role performance. It further promotes job autonomy and decreases emotional exhaustion, which supports the UN Sustainable Development Goal #3 (Good Health and Well-being).

PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION

This study addresses the UN Sustainable Development Goal #3: 'To ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages' and the healthcare providers will benefit from our study. Therefore, the study contributes to a more sustainable organization and society.

Studies on the Biotin-Avidin Multilayer Adsorption by Spectroscopic Ellipsometry

Protein multilayers were prepared on silica surfaces by up to 20 alternating incubations of a biotin-protein conjugate and polymerized streptavidin. Spectroscopic ellipsometry (350-750 nm) was used to investigate the physical thickness and the dispersion of the protein layer after each incubation step. Both parameters could be determined independently for films formed by 5 to 15 incubations. A single homogeneous protein layer was assumed for evaluation. This determination of layer parameters was limited by high correlation coefficients for less than 5 incubation steps. Deviations from the homogeneous single layer model were found for more than 15 incubation steps. The growth of the layer was reproducible, with a thickness increase of about 18.75 nm per incubation. An almost constant refractive index nD of 1.384 +/- 0.002 was found for the multilayer system. A protein mass deposition of 4.74 ng/mm2 was calculated per incubation step. The protein concentration of the layer was estimated of about 0.27 g/ml. The affinity system investigated is quite simple and may well serve as a prototype system in the characterization of optical and other transducers for affinity reactions. Copyright 1997 Academic Press.