Authentic Leadership of Nurses in the Hospital: A Scoping Review

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Nursing Leadership
• Organizational Psychology

Background:

• Healthcare challenges necessitate effective nursing leadership.
• Authentic leadership is gaining traction as a positive leadership style.
• This leadership approach shows promise in hospital settings.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the characteristics of authentic leadership among nurses in hospital settings.
• To synthesize scientific evidence on authentic leadership in nursing.

Main Methods:

• A scoping review was conducted following Joanna Briggs Institute methodology.
• Searches included major databases (MEDLINE, CINAHL, Scopus) and grey literature from 2019-2024.
• Studies focused on authentic leadership in hospital-based nursing were included; reviews and non-nursing studies were excluded.

Main Results:

• Sixteen articles were analyzed, primarily cross-sectional studies.
• Authentic leadership in nursing is linked to improved team performance, organizational commitment, and job satisfaction.
• It also correlates with reduced burnout and the creation of healthy work environments, though leader-subordinate perception gaps exist.

Conclusions:

• Authentic leadership enhances nursing care quality, patient outcomes, and staff motivation.
• It is crucial for building strong nursing teams, fostering trust, and achieving institutional objectives.
• Evidence strength is limited by study design (predominantly cross-sectional) and potential biases.