Current Status and Correlation between Clinical Nurses’ Well-Being and Psychological Resilience

Abstract

Abstract

Background

Under the backdrop of profound reforms in the healthcare system, clinical nurses face significant professional challenges. Chronic occupational stress has led to rising comorbidity rates of anxiety and depression among nurses, alongside increased nurse turnover. Psychological resilience, a core competency for coping with adversity, has become a focal point of attention due to its potential association with well-being. However, the correlation between nurses’ well-being and psychological resilience remains unclear.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted on 386 clinical nurses in January 2025. A convenience sampling method was employed to recruit 386 clinical nurses from Army Medical Center of PLA in Yuzhong District, Chongqing, China. The General Well-Being Schedule (18 items) was used to examine well-being, and the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (25 items) was used to examine psychological resilience. Spearman correlation analysis was conducted to examine the relationship between well-being and psychological resilience, while multivariate logistic regression analysis was applied to further explore their association.

Results

A total of 386 valid questionnaires were collected, yielding a valid response rate of 100%. Among the 386 clinical nurses, the mean total score for general well-being was 79.85±14.42. The median total psychological resilience score was 91.50, with an interquartile range (IQR) of 22.00. Correlation analysis revealed a significant positive association between the total general well-being score and total psychological resilience score (r = 0.580, P < 0.01). All five dimensions of general well-being, except for the “satisfaction with life and interests” subscale, showed positive correlations with both the total psychological resilience score and its three subdimensions (r > 0, P < 0.01). Multivariate logistic regression analysis identified three significant predictors of general well-being: the total psychological resilience score (t = 11.874, P < 0.01), satisfaction with income (t = 2.869, P = 0.04), and family burden level (t = 3.475, P = 0.01). Collectively, these three factors accounted for 34.4% of the variance in the total general well-being scores among clinical nurses.

Conclusions

Clinical nurses demonstrated moderately high levels of general well-being and psychological resilience, with a significant positive correlation observed between these two constructs. To enhance nurses’ well-being and maintain workforce stability, hospitals should prioritize interventions targeting three key areas: (1) strengthening psychological resilience through evidence-based psychological capital training programs; (2) improving income satisfaction by optimizing compensation systems and ensuring equitable remuneration; and (3) mitigating family burdens by strengthening workplace and family support systems. These measures are essential for sustaining workforce stability in clinical nursing settings.