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The effect of transformational leadership on nurses’ turnover intention: the mediating effects of person-organization fit and career calling

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Aims: This study aims to explore the relationship between transformational leadership, person-organization fit, career calling, and turnover intention among nurses. Additionally, it investigates whether person-organization fit and career calling serve as independent and chain mediators in the link between transformational leadership and turnover intention. Methods: The researchers selected a convenience sample of 1,342 nurses from four Grade A-III hospitals in Shandong Province between October and November 2025. They collected data using several instruments: the General Population Questionnaire, the Transformational Leadership Questionnaire, the Person-Organization Fit Scale, the Career Calling Scale, and the Intent to Leave Scale. Descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, and regression analysis were conducted using SPSS 26.0. To examine the chained mediation effect, they applied Model 6 in PROCESS 3.5 and estimated the 95% confidence interval using the Bootstrap method with 5,000 repeated samples. Results: The results demonstrated that transformational leadership had a positive correlation with both person-organization fit and career calling, and a negative correlation with turnover intention. Mediation analysis revealed that over half of the protective effect of leadership on turnover intention was indirect, mediated through three pathways: person-organization fit alone, career calling alone, and their sequential chain. All indirect effects were statistically significant. Conclusion: These findings show that transformational leadership reduces turnover intention through various complementary psychological mechanisms. This highlights the importance of relational fit and intrinsic motivation in understanding leadership effectiveness. The sequential mediation pathway reveals how organizational and personal factors interact to influence nurses' career decisions, offering a more nuanced theoretical framework for retention research.

Source: Frontiers in Psychology

DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1880075

Authors: Kailin Yin, Manman Shi, Lin Ji, Jie Sun, Binbin Zhang

Institutions: Shandong University, Qilu Hospital of Shandong University

Language: English

Topic: Nursing education and management

Subfield: Research and Theory

Field: Nursing

Domain: Health Sciences

SDGs: Decent work and economic growth, Good health and well-being

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,801