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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Public Health
Sec. Public Mental Health
Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1519192
This article is part of the Research Topic Novel Intervention Models Transcending Borders for Stress Management - Volume III View all articles
The mediating role of Perceived overqualification in the relationship between Emotional labor and Mindfulness among nurses in China
Provisionally accepted- 1 Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, Shandong Province, China
- 2 Shandong First Medical University, Tai'an, Shandong, China
Background:Perceived overqualification has attracted considerable attention from labor economists and managers, who perceive it as a risk factor affecting workforce stability.Mindfulness is closely associated with emotional labor, however,the potentiatl mechanisms underlying the relationship between mindfulness and emotional labor remain ambiguous.This study seeks to investigate the mediating role of perceived overqualification in the relationship between emotional labor and mindfulness among clinical nurses.Methods: A total of 354 clinical nurses were assessed using the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale,the Perceived Overqualification Scale,and the Emotional Labor Scale. The SPSS version 27.0 statistical analysis software was employed for the basic organization and analysis of the survey data. A structural equation model was used to assess the mediating role of perceived overqualification between mindfulness and the emotional labor of clinical nurses.The study indicated that the level of mindfulness and emotional labor among clinical nurses was moderate to high,whereas perceived overqualification was moderate.A significant negative correlation was observed between perceived overqualification and mindfulness (r = -0.270, P < 0.001). In contrast, mindfulness was significantly positive correlated with deep acting (r = 0.110, P < 0.05) and significantly negatively correlated with surface acting and emotional expression requirements(r=-0.294,r= -0.278,P < 0.001). Furthermore, perceived overqualification acted as a mediator between mindfulness and surface acting as well as between mindfulness and emotional expression requirements, with mediating effect sizes of 20% and 12.5%, respectively.By promoting mindfulness among clinical nurses while reducing their perceived overqualification may enhance their emotional labor capabilities, thereby fostering positive outcomes for their physical and mental health, and contributing to the advancement of high-quality nursing services.
Keywords: Nurse, mindfulness, perceived overqualification, Mediation, Emotional labor
Received: 29 Oct 2024; Accepted: 28 Feb 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Han, Su, Xuli, Lv and Jing. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Fujie Jing, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, 250355, Shandong Province, China
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