Abstract:
Stress among nurses had been found often higher than the general population, the stress affects the quality of nursing work and health status of nurses. However, studies of stress among nurses in Wenzhou are limited. The aim of this study was to investigate the stress among nurses and to examine the predictive relationship between nursing stressor, coping strategies, social support, psychological capital and stress among nurses who work in Wenzhou hospital. Multistage random sampling technique was adopted, and 173 nurses were recruited from three hospitals in Wenzhou, China. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearsons correlation, and standard linear regression analysis. The result of this study showed that the mean score of stress was 17.06 (SD = 4.532) out of 40. Results from the standard multiple linear regression analysis indicated that nursing stressor, social support and psychological capital explained 32.4 % of the variance of stress among nurses working in the Wenzhou hospital (Adj R 2 = 32.4 %, F (4, 168) = 21.65, p < .001). The analysis also showed that stress was significantly predicted by nursing stressor (β = .20, p < .001), social support (β = -.19, p = .006) and psychological capital (β = -.41, p < .001). However, there was no significant correlation between stress and coping strategies. The findings support the role of nursing stressor, social support and psychological capital in predicting stress among nurses. Future research may lead to interventions to reduce nurses' psychological stress by reducing stressors and increasing social support and nurses' psychological capital.