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Self-Transcendence and Work Engagement in Acute Care Staff Registered Nurses

Self-Transcendence and Work Engagement in Acute Care Staff Registered Nurses. Beth Palmer DNP, RN, ANP-BC, CNS, CCRN November 13, 2008. Background.

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Self-Transcendence and Work Engagement in Acute Care Staff Registered Nurses

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  1. Self-Transcendence and Work Engagementin Acute Care Staff Registered Nurses Beth Palmer DNP, RN, ANP-BC, CNS, CCRN November 13, 2008

  2. Background • People frequently choose to become nurses because caring for others brings meaning to their lives and gives them a sense that they are making a difference in the world. • Registered nurses often choose to work in acute care facilities because they find meaning in caring for patients who are acutely and/or critically ill.

  3. Background • The desire to find meaning through one’s work - consistent with philosophy of Victor Frankl • Frankl believed: striving to find meaning in life is primary motivational force in mankind • Self Transcendence: The ability of human beings to find meaning in their lives by being directed toward something, or someone, other than themselves

  4. Background • Self-Transcendence  + meaning • When nurses derive meaning from caring experiences  increased commitment and engagement with their work

  5. Problem Self-transcendence  +meaning • Self-transcendence may be connected to nurses’ relationship with their work The relationship between self-transcendence and work engagement has not been investigated

  6. Purposes To explore the levels and relationships of self-transcendence and work engagement in Acute Care Staff Registered Nurses.

  7. Theory of Self-Transcendence Adapted from: Reed, P. (2003). The Theory of Self-Transcendence. In M. Smith & P. Liehr (Eds.), Middle Range Theory for Nursing. New York: Springer Publishing Company, Inc.Adapted with permission of the author

  8. Research Questions • What is the level of self-transcendence in Acute Care Staff Registered Nurses? 2. What is the level of work engagement in Acute Care Staff Registered Nurses? 3. What is the relationship between self-transcendence and work engagement in Acute Care Staff Registered Nurses?

  9. Self Transcendence (ST) IsUniversal +Correlates with emotional well-being, spiritual well-being, sense of coherence, self esteem, hope, purpose in life, resilience, quality of life, health status, Nurses experience ST when they have life-changing encounters with patients Work Engagement (WE) +Correlates with Workplace job control job resource availability service climate autonomy appreciation +Correlates with Personality extraversion mobility achievement striving In nurses: Introspection leads to return to work engagement Literature Review

  10. Research Methods • Descriptive, correlational study design • Setting: National Teaching Institute (NTI) - annual national conference of the American Association of Critical Care Nurses 2008: held in large city in northern Illinois • Sample • Population: 9,000 registered nurses • Power analysis: minimum sample size of 64 (.05 significance level, 80% power, effect size of 0.3)

  11. Self-Transcendence Independent variable Self-Transcendence Scale (STS) Validity reported Internal reliability coefficient (.73-.93) Work Engagement Dependent variable Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) Validity reported Internal reliability coefficient (.91-.96) Operational Definitions

  12. Age Gender Ethnicity Years in nursing Years of employment Educational level Work status Percentage of time spent in direct patient care Area worked Work-related role Certification status Demographic Questionnaire Additional question: “To what extent does your work in nursing give you an awareness of the vulnerability of human beings?”

  13. Recruitment & Procedure • Exempt status from Case Western Reserve University IRB • Investigator seated at table in exhibition hall • Participants who completed surveys received candy bar

  14. Personal Female (94.3%) Caucasian (81.6%) Age 41-50 years (32.2%) 51-60 years (28.7%) Highest Nursing Degree Associates Degree (36.8%) Bachelors Degree (48.4%) Work # of years in nursing 1-15 years (50.5%) 15->30 years (48.2%) Certification (51.7%) Certified by AACN (10.3%) Other Certification Sample Characteristics

  15. STS Cronbach’s alpha = .79 UWES Cronbach’s alpha = .90 Subscales Vigor = .80 Dedication = .85 Absorption = .70 Instrument Reliability

  16. Research Questions 1 & 2 • Level of Self-Transcendence Mean STS score = 3.41, SD=.32 • Level of Work Engagement Mean UWES score = 4.61, SD=.61

  17. Research Question 3 Relationship between Self-Transcendence and Work Engagement **Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level *Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level

  18. Additional Question • To what extent does your work in nursing give you an awareness of the vulnerability of human beings? Very Much (76%) Somewhat (23%) • Indicates that these acute care nurses likely experience vulnerability relating to their work

  19. DiscussionSample and Instrument Reliability • Participants fairly representative of the overall population • Reliability coefficients for study instruments were acceptable and similar to those in previous studies

  20. DiscussionResults of Research Questions • Level of self-transcendence: similar nurses in 2 prior studies • Level of self-transcendence higher than non-nurses • Level of work engagement in this study • Total UWES: High end of “Average” • Vigor & Absorption: High end of “Average” • Dedication: “High”

  21. DiscussionResults of Research Questions Significant positive correlation: Self-Transcendence & Work Engagement

  22. Limitations • Use of convenience sample • Minimally acceptable STS reliability coefficient • Low UWES absorption subscale reliability coefficient

  23. Implications • Nursing administration - encourage and provide opportunities for nurses to self-transcend • Clinical Nurse Specialists - model, nurture, and educate staff about self-transcendence • Nursing educators - support students to incorporate experiences of vulnerability into development of self-transcendence  meaning in patient-care experiences

  24. Future Research • Replication • Intervention Testing • Crossover of work-engagement in nurses • Research must focus on discovering how to support the positive, fulfilling, work-related state of mind that will keep nursing a vibrant, fulfilling and meaningful profession

  25. Conclusion • First study exploring relationship between Self-Transcendence (ST) and Work Engagement (WE) • Significant positive relationship found between ST and WE - Nurses with higher levels of self-transcendence had more energy toward and were more dedicated and absorbed in their work • Key finding relating to nursing and nursing faculty shortage • By teaching and nurturing self-transcendence in nurses we can prepare and retainwork-engaged nurses who will thrive in and benefit our challenging and constantly changing healthcare environment.

  26. Thank you!Questions&Discussion

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