Mediating Effects of Psychological Capital and Work Passion Between Emergency Head Nurses’ Leadership and Emergency Nurses' Capacity in Emergency Public Health Events

OBJECTIVES: This study aims to explore the mediating role of psychological capital and work passion in the relationship between emergency head nurses' leadership and the emergency nurses' capacity in emergency public health events. DESIGN: A cross-sectional and correlational study. SAMPLE: 330 emergency nurses from 4 hospitals conveniently selected from Zhejiang province in China. MEASUREMENTS: The survey utilized the General Information Questionnaire, the Head Nurse Leadership Scale, the Emergency Nurses' Capacity to Public Health Events Questionnaire and the Psychological Capital of Nurses Scale. Data analyses were performed using independent sample t-tests, Pearson correlation analysis, one-way analysis of variance, structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis. RESULTS: Four variables in this study were significantly correlated (r = 0.80-0.86, p < 0.01). The direct effect of the head nurses' leadership on the emergency nurses' capacity was significant (78.2%), the psychological capital and work passion of nurses had a chain mediating effect (3.6%). CONCLUSIONS: Emergency head nurses' leadership is a core driver for enhancing nurses' capacity, psychological capital partially mediates the relationship between leadership and emergency response competence, and the work passion plays a limited role. Future research should explore strategies to optimize leadership behaviors and psychological interventions to enhance emergency capacity among emergency nurses.