Antecedent and Consequence of Nurse Engagement

This study explores the mediating effect of work engagement on the relationship between transformational leadership (TFL) and nurses’ job performance, along with the moderating effect of conscientiousness on work engagement within the TFL/performance relationship. Survey data were collected from 234 supervisor–subordinate dyads at a regional hospital in Taiwan, and linear regression modeling performed to examine the hypotheses. TFL was found to be positively correlated with nurses’ job performance; and the motivation mechanism of work engagement did mediate the relationship between TFL and job performance, but only when nurses’ conscientiousness was high. As such, the results provide new insights into both how, and why, TFL can enhance nurses’ job performance: specifically, that their work engagement and conscientiousness are key determinants of how the TFL/job performance relationship operates.