Relationships of the adversity quotient subtypes of nursing interns with depression, coping styles, positive psychological capital, and professional adaptability: a cross-sectional study

Nursing interns encounter numerous professional pressures during clinical practice. Assessing adversity quotient levels and understanding the influencing factors are crucial for supporting students' seamless transition to professional nurses. This study examined the adversity quotient subtypes of nursing interns and explored the relationships between adversity quotient and depression, coping styles, positive psychological capital, and professional adaptability. This study employed a cross-sectional research design, involving a survey of 287 nursing interns in five general hospitals in Shanghai, China. Latent profile analysis was conducted to explore the subtypes of adversity quotient with the four domains as input variables. Multinomial logistic regression models and multiple correspondence analysis were used for subsequent data analysis. The average adversity quotient score of the nursing interns was 116.63 ± 32.22. A three-profile solution was obtained based on the latent profile analysis results. Three distinct subtypes emerged: a high-adversity quotient subtype (n = 50, 17.4%), a medium-adversity quotient subtype (n = 189, 65.9%), and a relatively low-adversity quotient subtype (n = 48, 16.7%). Multinomial logistic regression revealed that nursing interns in the high-adversity quotient subtype tended to be male, and had higher scores for positive psychological capital, negative coping style, and professional adaptability (p < 0.05). Most of the nursing interns were in the medium adversity quotient subtype. Gender, positive psychological capital, negative coping style and professional adaptability were all significantly related to the adversity quotient. Boosting the positive psychological capital of nursing interns is an effective way to improve the adversity quotient.