Abstract:
Joy at work is an indicator of quality of work life. However, if work
characteristics and environments related to nursing activities are risky and harmful to
operators, joy at work of nurses would be affected. This study was survey research aiming
to study relationships between risk perception, work performance, and joy at work among
331 nurses in Primary Care Unit, Region 4,Thailand. The data were collected during August
October 2008 using self-administered questionnaires. The data were analyzed by
Pearsons Product Moment Correlation Coefficient and Multiple Regression.
The study revealed that 56.2% of nurses face operational risk. Their overall risk
perception was at a low level, whereas their psychosocial risk perception was at a medium
level. Mostly, their work performance reached a high level (56.8%). Their joy at work was
at either a medium or high level, at 50.2% and 49.8%, respectively. Besides this, it was
found that physical risk had a negative relationship with joy at work, whereas work
performance had a positive relationship with joy at work, among professional nurses in the
Primary Care Unit. In addition, it was found that work performance of professional nurses
and their marital status could predict joy at work by 42.90%.
According to the study, it is suggested that operational risk and hazard should be
reduced, especially for non-official hours shifts, or home visit programs for risk groups,
drug users, and psychiatric patients. Additionally, work performance of nurses in the
Primary Care Unit should be enhanced in order to promote nurses good quality of work
life and joy at work.