Leadership’s impact on job satisfaction

Aim: The purpose of this research was to test whether nurse manager’s servant leadership behaviors correlated to the job satisfaction and turnover intention of staff nurses. Background: Distinguished nursing excellence is accomplished by leaders that inspire others to adopt behaviors that encourage service and performance. Method: A 58 Likert-type servant leadership questionnaire assessing managers’ behaviors, relative to job satisfaction and turnover intention, was completed by 283 nurses working at a Magnet certified, Level II trauma center. In order to predict the influence of management behavior on job satisfaction and turnover intention, multiple linear regression analysis was utilized. Results: The conclusion reflected that servant leadership behaviors resonate with staff nurses resulting in an increase in job satisfaction and reduction in turnover intention beyond that of transformational leadership. The research demonstrated a strong, positive correlation linking servant leadership behaviors and job satisfaction. Conclusion: Servant leadership behaviors engage nursing staff resulting in higher job satisfaction and decreasing turnover intention. Implications for Nursing Management: Given the importance of human capital in nursing, nurse managers have an opportunity to create an environment where nurses can make meaningful contributions to an organization by reducing one of the causes of the nursing shortage.