Influence of nurse manager leadership styles on staff

Editor's Note

Nurse managers who provide support and communication through transformational and transactional leadership styles have a positive impact on staff nurse work engagement and can improve organizational outcomes, this study finds.

A total of 441 staff nurses working in three acute care hospitals were surveyed.

Transactional and transformational leadership styles positively influenced work engagement of those surveyed. Passive-avoidant leadership styles negatively influenced work engagement.

BACKGROUND: Nursing literature supports the importance of an engaged nursing workforce as a means to positively influence performance. Nurse manager leadership style plays a critical role in engaging staff nurses. These relationships have been minimally studied in nurse managers and staff nurses.