The mediating role of psychological capital in the relationship between job stress and professional identity in Chinese medical interns
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1-1-2023
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Adaption to clinical work during the internship can induce several stressors among medical students, especially in the context of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Particularly, job stress could be linked to the development of psychological traits and the formation of the professional identity of medical interns. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to explore the relationship between job stress, psychological capital, and professional identity through a mediation analysis of Chinese medical interns. METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in 30 hospitals and clinics in China from June 2021 to March 2022. A total of 665 medical interns filled out questionnaires related to demographic questions, psychological capital, job stress, and professional identity. Data analysis was executed using the IBM SPSS version 22.0 software and its add-in PROCESS Windows version 4.0. RESULTS: The findings indicated a statistically significant mediating effect of psychological capital between job stress and professional identity. Job stress and job stress combined with psychological capital accounted for 5.3% and 37.9%, respectively, of the variance in professional identity. The bootstrapping method corroborated the significance of the indirect effect of job stress through psychological capital (95% bootstrap CI = -4.7921, -2.4345). CONCLUSION: The current findings underscore the need for increased attention on improving the psychological capital of medical interns.
Keywords
Mediation analysis, medical students, professional role, psychological resilience, occupational stress
Divisions
nursing
Funders
Education Department of Hubei Province in China (Q20214306) ; (B2019218),Jingchu University of Technology (QN202106/622165)
Publication Title
Work
Volume
76
Issue
4
Publisher
IOS Press
Publisher Location
NIEUWE HEMWEG 6B, 1013 BG AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS