Resilience, Well-Being, and Professional Practice Capabilities in New Graduate Nurses: A Longitudinal Mediation Study

New graduate nurses experience substantial stress during the transition from student to professional practice, which may compromise their well-being and professional practice capabilities. While resilience has been identified as a protective psychological resource, limited longitudinal research has examined how resilience influences professional performance over time or whether well-being functions as a mediating mechanism. Understanding these dynamic relationships is critical for informing evidence-based strategies to support early-career nurses.

This study aimed to (1) examine temporal changes in resilience, well-being, and professional practice capabilities during the first 3 months of employment among new graduate nurses; (2) investigate associations among these variables; and (3) test whether well-being mediates the relationship between resilience and professional practice capabilities.

A three-month longitudinal study was conducted with 72 newly graduated nurses. Measures of resilience, well-being, and five domains of professional practice capabilities (patient-centered care, interdisciplinary teamwork, evidence-based practice, quality improvement, and technology application) were collected at baseline, 2 weeks, and 3 months. Pearson's r correlations, generalized estimating equations (GEEs), and Monte Carlo simulations were performed to examine temporal associations and indirect effects.

Resilience was significantly associated with well-being (B = 1.285, p < 0.001) and all domains of professional practice capabilities. Both resilience and well-being independently predicted patient-centered care, interdisciplinary teamwork, evidence-based practice, quality improvement, and technology application. Monte Carlo simulations confirmed that well-being significantly mediated the relationship between resilience and all five performance domains. Improvements in well-being and several domains of professional practice capabilities were observed at 3 months.

Resilience serves as a foundational psychological resource that supports new graduate nurses' professional practice capabilities. Well-being serves as a key mechanism translating resilience into evidence-based nursing behaviors. Early-career interventions that strengthen resilience and promote well-being may enhance professional practice capabilities and improve workforce retention during the critical transition period.