The moderating effect of social support on the stress-satisfaction relationship among Jordanian hospital nurses

AIM: To investigate the moderating effect of social support from co-workers and supervisors on the stress-satisfaction relationship among Jordanian hospital nurses. DESIGN: A correlational descriptive survey was used to investigate this effect among a convenience sample of 288 hospital nurses in Jordan. METHODS: Data were collected using a set of questionnaires that included the Nursing Stress Scale, the McCloskey/Mueller Satisfaction Scale, the Sargent and Terry Scale, and the demographic form. RESULTS: Perceived social support from both co-workers and supervisors enhanced the level of perceived job satisfaction. Hierarchical regression analysis showed that 33% of the variation in job satisfaction was explained by the background variables, job stress, social support from co-workers, social support from supervisors, and the interaction between job stress and social support from both co-workers and supervisors. CONCLUSION: The results indicated the importance of the moderating effects of social support from both co-workers and supervisors on nurses' job satisfaction. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT: Social support groups in the workplace can be paramount in enhancing the level of nurses' job satisfaction.