The mediator role of ethical leadership perception in the effect of healthcare professionals' perceived stress level on work performance

Working conditions and leadership style have an impact on employee stress and performance. Due to the nature of health services, healthcare professionals are exposed to more stressors. In this context, this study aims to determine the relationship between the perceived stress level of healthcare professionals and their work performance and to determine whether ethical leadership perception plays a mediating role in this relationship. This study was conducted with 250 healthcare professionals working in a public hospital in the province of Muş. In the study, data were collected using the following scales as well as the sociodemographic characteristics form, "Perceived Stress Scale", developed by Cohen, Kamarck and Mermelstein (1983) and adapted into Turkish by Örücü and Demir (2008), "Job Performance Scale" developed by Sigler and Pearson (2000) and adapted into Turkish by Çöl (2008), and "Ethical Leadership Scale" developed by Brown et al. (2005) and adapted into Turkish by Tuna et al. (2012). Frequency, percentage, confirmatory factor analysis, one-way analysis of variance, Kruskall Wallis H, Mann Whitney U tests and Bonferroni correction were used with AMOS 24 and SPSS 26 statistical programs. According to the analyses made, the perceived stress level of healthcare professionals is 22.39 (±5.88), and the ethical leadership perception level is moderate with 27.87 (±11.48). The work performance level of the employees is at a high level with 16.00 (±3.09). Moreover, it has been determined that the perceived stress level of healthcare professionals has a statistically negative impact on the level of job performance and ethical leadership perception. A statistically significant difference was obtained between the perceived stress level and ethical leadership perception level according to the educational status of the employees in the study, and the ethical leadership perception level and workperformance level according to their marital status. The study revealed that the perceived stress level of healthcare professionals has a negative impact on the level of work performance. Based on these results, it is recommended to consider the factors that negatively affect the stress of employees and to develop necessary strategies.