Relationship between COVID-19 stress and Chinese nurses’ turnover intention: The effect of psychological security and psychological well-being

Due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, many employees have shown high turnover intention, mainly because of the enormous psychological stress generated, especially among medical personnel. In this study, the relationship between COVID-19 stress and turnover intention was examined by performing hierarchical regression analysis, common method bias analysis, and confirmatory factor analysis of data obtained from 319 nurses. The results of the study show that COVID-19 stress had a significant direct effect on nurses' turnover intention, and psychological security and psychological well-being mediated the relationship between COVID-19 stress and nurses’ turnover intention. Furthermore, psychological security and psychological well-being played a sequential mediating role in the relationship between COVID-19 stress and nurses' turnover intention. These findings suggest that hospital managers should provide supportive resources to help nurses cope with COVID-19 stress, increase psychological security and psychological well-being, and thus reduce nurses' turnover intentions.