Social undermining and psychological empowerment: unveiling the association to resilience in nursing - a cross-sectional study

Objective: This study intended to explore the mediating effect of psychological resilience in the relationship between social undermining and psychological empowerment among nurses. Methods: A cross-sectional correlational descriptive design was employed to fulfill the study’s aim at Damietta General Hospital through convenient sample of 385 registered nurses. Data analysis was implemented using SPSS software package version 26.0. Findings: Study findings reported that a direct effect of social undermining on psychological resilience is negative and significant (β = -0.092, SE = 0.042, Z = -2.17, p = 0.030). Similarly, psychological resilience significantly predicts psychological empowerment with a strong positive effect (β = 0.347, SE = 0.047, Z = 7.26, p = < 0.001). The direct effect of social undermining on psychological empowerment is negative and highly significant (β = -0.422, SE = 0.036, Z = -11.51, p = < 0.001). Conclusion: The study concluded that social undermining is a workplace stressor that emotionally damages employees by making them feel burnt out when performing their job. It also has a negative influence on psychological empowerment of employees, and in reducing their psychological resilience. Also, psychological resilience mediates social undermining and psychological empowerment. Nursing implications: It is crucial for organizations to seek for promoting ethical leaders through creating an ethical infrastructure, which can forestall social undermining. Emphasizing the implementation of interventions aimed at building resilience as a strategy for mitigating the harmful effects of social undermining. Overall, this research underscores the interconnectedness of social undermining and psychological empowerment, emphasizing the necessity for supportive organizational environments that promote both resilience and psychological empowerment.