Trapped in position, strong in spirit? Examining career plateau and psychological resilience among nurses

Background Nurses may experience career plateau, a phenomenon that can negatively impact motivation, job satisfaction and intentions to remain in the profession. As a personal resource, psychological resilience may be particularly important in helping nurses cope with the challenges associated with career plateau. Objective To examine the relationship between psychological resilience and career plateau among nurses. Method A cross-sectional, descriptive study was conducted with 784 nurses employed at a tertiary university hospital. Data were collected using the Career Plateau Scale, the Brief Resilience Scale and a demographic information form. Descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, independent samples t -tests, and multiple linear regression analyses were used to analyze the data. Results The mean psychological resilience score was 21.67 (SD = 4.29), and the mean overall career plateau score was 3.10 (SD = 0.72). Psychological resilience was significantly and negatively correlated with career plateau ( r = -0.293, p < 0.001). Regression analyses showed that lower levels of psychological resilience ( p < 0.001) and not choosing the nursing profession voluntarily ( p < 0.001) were significant predictors of higher career plateau scores. Additionally, age, marital status, and years of professional experience were found to influence perceptions of plateau at the dimensional level. Conclusions Psychological resilience is a key factor shaping nurses’ experiences of career plateau. Enhancing resilience through organizational support and targeted individual-level interventions may help reduce perceptions of career plateau and improve professional satisfaction. Future longitudinal and intervention-based studies are needed to further reveal these relationships.