Relationships Among Communication Competence, Self-Efficacy, and Job Satisfaction in Korean Nurses Working in the Emergency Medical Center Setting

BACKGROUND: The communication competence of nurses working in emergency medical center settings is essential to establish a therapeutic nurse-patient relationship. Education and strategic development are required to improve the communication competence of emergency room (ER) nurses. PURPOSE: This study was conducted to determine the relationships among individual communication competence, self-efficacy, and job satisfaction in Korean nurses in the emergency medical center setting. METHODS: A cross-sectional descriptive design was adopted. The study sample included 214 nurses at 11 emergency medical centers in Seoul and Kyunggi-Do, Korea. Measures used included the Global Interpersonal Communication Competence, self-efficacy scale, and job satisfaction scale. The collected data were analyzed using the SPSS version 18.0 statistical software program and included descriptive statistics (frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation, independent t test, analysis of variance, and Pearson's correlation coefficient). RESULTS: The degrees of communication competence and self-efficacy of ER nurses were good, with higher scores than the median values. However, the degree of job satisfaction was poor, indicating a lower score than the median value. Religious affiliation and previous participation in communication education each had a significant impact on communication competence. Religious affiliation and time of worse duty each had a significant impact on self-efficacy. Length of career (year) in the emergency medical center and type of hospital each had a significant impact on job satisfaction. Positive correlations were identified among communication competence, self-efficacy, and job satisfaction. CONCLUSIONS/IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: This study supported the presence of significant correlations among communication competence, self-efficacy, and job satisfaction. Thus, it is necessary to develop training programs that are customized to individual characteristics such as self-efficacy and job satisfaction to improve the communicative competence of ER nurses.