- Humanistic leadership positively correlates with nurse interns' professional identity and caring behaviour, and negatively correlates with workplace violence.
- Professional identity partially mediates the effect of humanistic leadership on reducing workplace violence among nurse interns.
- Professional identity also partially mediates the positive effect of humanistic leadership on nurse interns' caring behaviour.
SAGE Open Nurs. 2026 May 22;12:23779608261449904. doi: 10.1177/23779608261449904. eCollection 2026 Jan-Dec.
ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: Humanistic leadership has gained increasing attention in nursing as an approach that highlights empathy, respect, and ethical care for others. Although it has the potential to improve nurses’ professional growth and work environment, evidence regarding humanistic leadership among nurse interns remains limited. In clinical training settings, workplace violence and caring behavior are still major issues often affecting interns’ professional identity and overall performance. Little is known about how humanistic leadership is linked to workplace violence and caring behavior among nurse interns, or whether professional identity can explain these relationships.
AIM: This study aimed to investigate the role of humanistic leadership in reducing workplace violence and promoting caring behavior through the mediating effect of professional identity among nurse interns, using structural equation modeling.
METHODS: A correlational cross-sectional design was conducted among nursing interns in Zagazig and Mansoura University hospitals, Egypt. Four standardized questionnaires were used to examine perceptions of humanistic leadership, professional identity, workplace violence, and caring behavior. The study’s hypothetical model was examined using AMOS structural equation modeling (SEM).
RESULTS: A total of 1170 completed questionnaires were returned and considered valid for analysis, conforming to a response rate of 93.6%. Humanistic leadership revealed significant and positive correlations with nurse interns’ professional identity (r = 0.589, p < 0.001) and caring behavior (r = 0.426, p < 0.001), whereas it showed a negative and significant correlation with workplace violence (r = – 0.199, p < 0.001). Professional identity partially mediates the relationship between humanistic leadership and nurse interns’ workplace violence (β = – 0.04, p = 0.01, 95% CI [- 0.079, -0.008]). Likewise, professional identity partially mediates the effect of humanistic leadership on caring behavior among nurse interns (β = 0.33, p = 0.001, 95% CI [0.265, 0.401]).
CONCLUSIONS: Humanistic leadership is associated with a supportive and safe work environment for nurse interns. Additionally, by strengthening professional identity, humanistic leadership is associated negatively with workplace violence and positively with caring behaviors.
PMID:42186483 | PMC:PMC13198656 | DOI:10.1177/23779608261449904
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