Relationship between organizational commitment and thriving at work of nurses: the mediating effect of psychological detachment

Background Thriving at work refers to a positive development state, which contributes to enhance work adaptability and improve work performance. however, most existing studies focus on the management of organizational behavior among nurses from a negative perspective, with relatively few researches approaching the topic from the perspective of positive psychology. This study aims to determine the current situation and factors of thriving at work among nurses, as well as examine the relationship mechanism between the organizational commitment, psychological detachment and thriving at work. Methods This study is a quantitative cross-sectional research using an online survey. Convenience sampling was employed to recruit 512 nurses from six tertiary hospitals in Sichuan Province, China, using general information questionnaire, Chinese version organizational commitment questionnaire, psychological detachment from work scale and thriving at work scale between July and December 2024. Results The score of organizational commitment, psychological detachment and thriving at work among nurses was (50.49±5.70), (13.04±2.60) and (47.28±14.03), separately. There are statistically significant differences between groups of different gender, age, years of experience, average monthly night shifts, monthly income, average sleep duration, family support and effort-reward matching ( P <0.05). Additionally, the structural equation modeling indicate that psychological detachment played a mediating role between organizational commitment and thriving at work ( β =0.234, P <0.001). Conclusion The thriving at work of nurses is at a moderate level. The organizational commitment not only exerts a direct influence on thriving but also has an indirect impact on it through the mediating role of psychological detachment. Nursing managers can enhance nurses' organizational commitment by appropriately delegating power and cultivating inclusive and authentic leadership styles. Nurses can also attain psychological detachment by decomposing and refining work tasks and scientifically scheduling non-working time, ultimately achieving thriving at work. Clinical trial number Not applicable