Work environment, organizational commitment and intention to quit among nurses : the mediating role of job burnout

The shortage of nurses is one of the crucial issues in developing countries due to increased intention to quit among nurses. The aim of this study was to analyze the relationship between work environment, organizational commitment and intention to quit among psychiatric nurses in Punjab, Pakistan through the mediating role of job burnout. A survey method was utilized and information was gathered by distributing questionnaire to psychiatric nurses. A total of 305 respondents participated in this study via simple random sampling. Work environment, organizational commitment and intention to quit were measured by using the Work Environment Scale (WES), Organizational Commitment Scale (OCS) and Intention To Quit Scale (ITQS), while job burnout was measured by using the Maslach Burnout Inventory Scale (MBIS). Descriptive and inferential statistical analyses were used to analyze the data. Twenty eight hypotheses were tested, thirteen hypotheses were accepted and fifteen were rejected. Results indicated that with regards to work environment, there were significant relationships between involvement, peer cohesion, work pressure and intention to quit. Insignificant relationships were found between supervisors support, clarity and physical comfort. With regards to organizational commitment, there were significant relationships between affective commitment and intention to quit while insignificant relationships were found between intention to quit with continuance and normative commitment. These findings signify that job burnout mediated the relationships between involvement, peer cohesion, physical comfort and intention to quit as well as mediating the relationship between normative commitment and intention to quit. The findings of this study contribute to the body of knowledge and may assist policy makers and hospital management to reduce the intention to quit among psychiatric nurses.