Impact of Nurse Manager Leadership Styles on Work Engagement: A Systematic Literature Review

Abstract

Aims. This systematic review aimed to identify, evaluate, and synthesise the results of the studies that examine the relationship between nurse managers’ leadership practices and staff nurses’ work engagement in hospital settings and to provide recommendations for improvement and further research. Background. A lack of supportive leadership is identified as one of the most common reasons nurses leave employment. To meet the global shortage of nurses, nurse managers need to maximise staff retention and work engagement. Evaluation. A systematic review was conducted to identify research published between 2010 and 2021 and registered in PubMed, CINAHL, PsycINFO, Embase, EMCare, and Eric databases. The methodology guidelines outlined in the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) Methodology for Systematic Reviews were followed, and the results were reported using the PRISMA 2020 guidelines. The review protocol was registered with PROSPERO (ID CRD42021277463). Key Issue. Eleven (11) studies from 12 articles were included in this review. Three main leadership style themes were identified, and these showed statistically significant direct and indirect relationships with nurses’ work engagement: relationally focused, task-focused, and lack of leadership. Work engagement was mainly assessed in terms of dedication, absorption, and vigour. The effects of leadership styles on work engagement were found to be mediated by trust in the leader, environmental resources such as structural empowerment, six work-life areas (workload, control, values, community, rewards, and fairness), person-job fit, organisational support, leader-member exchange, and personal resources such as self-efficacy and decision authority. Conclusion. This review found a significant correlation between positive nurse manager leadership style and the work engagement of registered nurses. Implications for Nursing Management. The results of this review suggest that nursing work engagement can be improved by implementing relational leadership behaviours. The findings of this review will be useful for developing appropriate nurse leaders’ leadership styles, improving their workplace environments, and planning leadership training. It is essential to acknowledge the indirect effects of nurse leaders’ leadership styles and their mediating factors on work engagement while developing interventions for staff nurses.