Effects of some characteristics of nurses and authentic leadership approaches of nurse managers on nurses' organizational citizenship levels

ABSTRACT Effects of Some Characteristics of Nurses and Authentic Leadership Approaches of Nurse Managers on Nurses' Organizational Citizenship Levels The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of authentic leadership behaviors of nurse managers on nurses' organizational citizenship levels. The study sample consisted of 334 nurses working in a state hospital, a university hospital, a foundation university hospital and a private hospital. The study data were collected using the Sociodemographic Characteristics Questionnaire, Authentic Leadership Questionnaire and Organizational Citizenship Behavior Scale. To analyze the study data, t-test, standard deviation, Mann Whitney U test, analysis of variance in independent groups and Pearson Correlation Coefficient were used. In the present study, it was determined that the nurses had high levels of organizational citizenship and nurse managers displayed high levels of authentic leadership behaviors. Of the participants, those who were in the 30 and over age group, who were married, whose length of service in the profession or organization was5 years and more, who worked in the unit5 years and more, whose working hours were less than 12 hours a day, and who worked the day shift had significantly higher levels of organizational citizenship. It was also determined that the nurses who were satisfied with their job and who did not intend to leave the job had significantly higher levels of organizational citizenship. The results of the present study revealed that as the mean scores the nurses obtained from the Authentic Leadership Questionnaire and its subscales increased so did their organizational citizenship levels. In order for nurses to display better organizational citizenship behaviors, nurse managers' authentic leadership skills should be improved. In addition, nurse managers should pay attention to nurses' individual and professional characteristics affecting their organizational citizenship levels. Keywords: Authentic leadership, leadership, leaving the job, nursing, organizational citizenship