Work–life integration in nurses: does mental well-being mediates the effects of perceived stress and psychological safety?

The sustainability of healthcare systems is directly linked to the protection and promotion of employee well-being. Nurses, who are at the heart of healthcare services, face significant barriers to achieving work-life integration due to professional challenges such as high workloads, intense emotional labor, and shift work schedules. This study aims to examine the effects of perceived stress, and psychological safety on work-life integration and to determine the mediating role of mental well-being in this process. The study is quantitative and cross-sectional. The sample of the study consists of 488 nurses working in public and private hospitals in the Çukurova region of Türkiye. Data was collected using a survey including the Perceived Stress Scale, the Psychological Safety Scale, the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale, and the Work-Life Balance Scale. Pearson correlation and Process macro used to examine the relationships among the variables and mediating effects. The analysis results indicated that mental well-being ( r = 0.398, p < 0.001) and psychological safety( r = 0.332, p < 0.001) have a significant positive relationship with work-life integration, while perceived stress ( r =-0.263, p < 0.001) has a significant negative relationship. The mediation analyses revealed that mental well-being plays a partial mediating role in the effects of both psychological safety (b = 0.201) with a and perceived stress (β=-0.347) on work-life integration. Additionally, it was found that shift work schedules and monthly work hours exceeding 200 h significantly reduced nurses’ levels of work-life integration. Mental well-being serves as a significant mechanism in work-life integration by buffering the negative effects of stress and transmitting the positive outcomes of psychological safety. It is critically important for healthcare management and policies to focus on well-being-focused strategies, shape a psychologically safe work environment, and implement structural adjustments to address excessive working hours in order to improve nurses’ work-life integration. Not applicable.