Associations among workplace incivility, stress coping, and nursing performance in hospital nurses: A path analysis

This study aimed to identify the associations among workplace incivility, stress-coping strategy, and nursing performance and confirm how workplace incivility influences nursing performance through the stress-coping strategy.

This is a descriptive, cross-sectional study. Data were collected using a self-reported questionnaire from 245 nurses working at seven hospitals in Korea between December 2019 and January 2020.

The associations among the study variables (workplace incivility, stress coping, and nursing performance) were analyzed using path analysis with bootstrapping.

Supervisors' incivility affected directly and negatively nursing performance although problem-focused coping was mediating between them. By contrast, coworkers' and doctors' incivility was not directly associated with nursing performance through stress-coping strategies.

Problem-focused coping enhanced nursing performance and was a more effective stress-coping strategy than emotion-focused coping for nurses affected by coworkers' and doctors' incivilities. Supervisors' incivility may be considered a threatening factor to nursing performance even though problem-focused coping partially mediates between supervisors' incivility and nursing performance.

Organizations must prevent all kinds of workplace incivilities from occurring. Nursing managers should periodically monitor the relationship between the supervisors and nurses and be aware of nurses' stress-coping strategies under stressful situations.