Empowerment and Job Satisfaction Among Nursing Care Staff in Long Term Care Facilities

Date of Degree

12-2012

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Program

Education

Advisor

Dorothy Ettling

Advisor

Judith Beauford

Advisor

Mark S. Teachout

Abstract

This dissertation examines Kanter's empowerment theoretical model specifying the relationships among demographics, structural empowerment, and job satisfaction. Empowerment has become an increasingly important factor in determining nursing care staff job satisfaction in current long term care work environments in the southwest part of the United States. A cross-sectional correlational survey design was used to test Kanter's organizational empowerment model with a sample of 106 nursing care staff employed in 37 long term care facilities in 2011. The instruments used were the Nursing Staff Demographic Profile, Conditions of Work Effectiveness-II (Laschinger, Finegan, Shamian, & Wilk, 2001), and Job Satisfaction Survey (Spector, 1994). The items for Conditions of Work Effectiveness cover opportunity, information, resources, support and, informal and formal power. The job satisfaction items cover pay, promotion, supervision, fringe benefits, contingent rewards, operating procedures, coworkers, nature of the work, and communication. A statistically significant positive correlation was found between empowerment and job satisfaction (r = 0.598,/? < .001). The results provide support for Kanter's empowerment theory in the long term care nursing care staff population. Improving empowerment in a supportive environment will allow nursing care staff to experience satisfaction in their employment in long term care facilities.

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