Abstract The work environment in Portuguese hospitals, characterized by economic cutbacks, can lead to higher levels of burnout experienced by nursing staff. Furthermore, vulnerability to stress can negatively affect the perception of burnout in the workplace. However, structural empowerment is an organizational process that can prevent and decrease burnout among nurses. Consequently, the aim of the study was to examine to what extent structural empowerment and vulnerability to stress can play a predictive role in core burnout in a sample of Portuguese nurses. A convenience sample of 297 nursing staff members from Portuguese hospitals was used in this study. Core burnout was negatively and significantly related to all the dimensions of structural empowerment, and it was positively and significantly related to vulnerability to stress. Regression models showed that core burnout was significantly predicted by access to funds, access to opportunities and vulnerability to stress. Organizational administrations must make every effort in designing interventions focused on structural empowerment, as well as interventions focused on individual interventions that enhance skills for coping with stress.

Resumen El contexto laboral en los hospitales portugueses, caracterizado por los recortes económicos, puede contribuir al aumento de los niveles de burnout experimentados por el personal de enfermería. Además, la vulnerabilidad al estrés en estos profesionales afecta negativamente a la percepción del estrés en el contexto de trabajo. No obstante, el empowerment estructural es un proceso organizacional que puede prevenir y aliviar el burnout en este colectivo profesional. En este sentido, el objetivo de este estudio es comprobar el papel predictor del empowerment estructural y la vulnerabilidad al estrés sobre el burnout en una muestra de enfermeros portugueses. Se utilizó una muestra por conveniencia de 297 profesionales enfermeros de hospitales de Portugal. El core burnout se relacionó negativa y significativamente con todas las dimensiones del empowerment estructural, y positivamente con la vulnerabilidad al estrés. Los modelos de regresión lineal múltiple mostraron como predictores significativos del core burnout el acceso a recursos, el acceso a oportunidades y la vulnerabilidad al estrés. Las administraciones deben diseñar intervenciones centradas en el empowerment estructural, pero también en intervenciones individuales que mejoren las capacidades de afrontamiento del estrés.

Abstract The work environment in Portuguese hospitals, characterized by economic cutbacks, can lead to higher levels of burnout experienced by nursing staff. Furthermore, vulnerability to stress can negatively affect the perception of burnout in the workplace. However, structural empowerment is an organizational process that can prevent and decrease burnout among nurses. Consequently, the aim of the study was to examine to what extent structural empowerment and vulnerability to stress can play a predictive role in core burnout in a sample of Portuguese nurses. A convenience sample of 297 nursing staff members from Portuguese hospitals was used in this study. Core burnout was negatively and significantly related to all the dimensions of structural empowerment, and it was positively and significantly related to vulnerability to stress. Regression models showed that core burnout was significantly predicted by access to funds, access to opportunities and vulnerability to stress. Organizational administrations must make every effort in designing interventions focused on structural empowerment, as well as interventions focused on individual interventions that enhance skills for coping with stress.

Resumen El contexto laboral en los hospitales portugueses, caracterizado por los recortes económicos, puede contribuir al aumento de los niveles de burnout experimentados por el personal de enfermería. Además, la vulnerabilidad al estrés en estos profesionales afecta negativamente a la percepción del estrés en el contexto de trabajo. No obstante, el empowerment estructural es un proceso organizacional que puede prevenir y aliviar el burnout en este colectivo profesional. En este sentido, el objetivo de este estudio es comprobar el papel predictor del empowerment estructural y la vulnerabilidad al estrés sobre el burnout en una muestra de enfermeros portugueses. Se utilizó una muestra por conveniencia de 297 profesionales enfermeros de hospitales de Portugal. El core burnout se relacionó negativa y significativamente con todas las dimensiones del empowerment estructural, y positivamente con la vulnerabilidad al estrés. Los modelos de regresión lineal múltiple mostraron como predictores significativos del core burnout el acceso a recursos, el acceso a oportunidades y la vulnerabilidad al estrés. Las administraciones deben diseñar intervenciones centradas en el empowerment estructural, pero también en intervenciones individuales que mejoren las capacidades de afrontamiento del estrés.

ABSTRACT Objective Job satisfaction is considered to be one of the most important indicators of quality of health care and quality of work life for health professionals. In the context of nursing, social support and work engagement are regarded as two of the most important predictors of job satisfaction. Consequently, the aim of this study was to examine to what extent social support (supervisor/coworkers) and work engagement predict job satisfaction in a sample of Portugueses nurses. Methodology A cross-sectional study using questionnaires was conducted. A convenience sample of members from Portuguese hospitals was used in this study (n = 215, return rate = 55.56%). Results Social support from supervisor and from coworkers and work engagement were significantly related to job satisfaction. Regression models showed that job satisfaction was significantly predicted by both types of social support and work engagement. Conclusion Interventions based on the creation of informal and formal support networks, training of supervisors in management and coaching skills, and a greater presence of work and personal resources would increase the levels of job satisfaction in nurses.

RESUMEN Objetivo La satisfacción laboral es considerada como uno de los indicadores más importantes tanto de la calidad de los cuidados de salud como de la calidad de vida laboral de los profesionales de la salud. Entre los antecedentes de la satisfacción laboral, se destaca el apoyo social del supervisor y de los colegas y el engagement en el trabajo en el contexto de enfermería. En este sentido, el objetivo de este estudio es comprobar el papel predictor del apoyo social y del engagement en el trabajo sobre la satisfacción laboral en una muestra de enfermeros y enfermeras del sur de Portugal. Métodos Estudio transversal a través de cuestionarios. La muestra estuvo compuesta por 215 profesionales de enfermería de hospitales del sur de Portugal (55.56% de tasa de respuesta). Resultados La cohesión social del supervisor y de los compañeros y el engagement en el trabajo se relacionaron de forma positiva y significativa con la satisfacción laboral. Los modelos de regresión lineal múltiple y jerárquica mostraron que los dos tipos de apoyo social y el engagement fueron predicciones significativos de la satisfacción con el trabajo de los participantes. Conclusión Intervenciones basadas en la creación de redes informales y formales de apoyo, la formación de los supervisores en competencias de gestión y coaching y una mayor presencia de recursos laborales y personales permitirían aumentar los niveles de satisfacción laboral en los profesionales de enfermería.

The aim of this study is to examine the relationship between role stress, work engagement, and job satisfaction according to the Job Demands-Resources Model. The proposed model hypothesizes that work engagement mediates the relationship between role ambiguity, role conflict, and role overload on one hand, and job satisfaction on the other. To test the model, data was collected from 586 workers from southern Spain (Mage = 37.11, 50% women). Model fit and mediation test were examined using structural equation modeling (path analysis). Results showed that role conflict, role ambiguity, and work engagement were significant predictors of job satisfaction. However, work engagement did not mediate the relationship between role stress and job satisfaction. Role stress as a hindrance job demand would explain the most direct impact on job satisfaction than through work engagement. Implications for practice and future research are considered.

El objetivo de este estudio es examinar las relaciones entre estrés de rol, engagement y satisfacción laboral de acuerdo con el modelo demandas-recursos laborales. El modelo propuesto plantea que el engagement media la relación entre ambigüedad, conflicto y sobrecarga de rol, por un lado y satisfacción en el trabajo, por el otro. Para verificar el modelo, se obtuvieron datos de una muestra de 586 trabajadores del sur de España (Medad = 37.11, 50% mujeres). El ajuste del modelo y de la mediación se realizaron mediante un modelo de ecuaciones estructurales (path analysis). Los resultados mostraron que el conflicto de rol y la ambigüedad de rol junto con el engagement fueron predictores significativos de la satisfacción laboral. No obstante, el engagement no medió la relación entre el estrés de rol y la satisfacción laboral. El estrés de rol como demanda obstaculizadora explicaría el mayor impacto directo sobre la satisfacción que a través del engagement. Se proponen implicaciones prácticas y futuras investigaciones.

O objetivo deste estudo foi a tradução e adaptação para a população portuguesa do Questionário de Condições para Eficácia do Trabalho (Conditions of Work Effectiveness Questionnaire, CWEQ-II) (Laschinger, Finegan, Shamian, & Wilk, 2004). Foi aplicado um processo de tradução-retradução dos itens do questionário, cujas características psicométricas foram analisadas através de uma amostra de 282 funcionários, docentes e não docentes, de uma universidade portuguesa. Os dados foram submetidos a uma análise fatorial confirmatória, análise de itens e análise de fidelidade. A validade critério foi analisada com recurso a um modelo de regressão múltipla no empowerment global e a t-test. Os resultados confirmaram a estrutura original de quatro fatores, obtida por Laschinger e colaboradores (2004), a qual é suportada pela teoria de empowerment estrutural do Kanter. As propriedades psicométricas da versão portuguesa do CWEQ-II foram adequadas, permitindo a sua utilização no local de trabalho. Pesquisas futuras devem investigar a validade de constructo e testar a rede nomológica da construção, operacionalizada dentro do campo do bem-estar e no contexto do local de trabalho.

The aim of this study was to adapt and translate into Portuguese the Conditions for Work Effectiveness Questionnaire (CWEQ-II) (Laschinger, Finegan, Shamian, & Wilk, 2004). A process of translation and reverse-translation was applied to the questionnaire's items, whose psychometric properties were examined using a sample of 282 Portuguese university employees, teachers and services staff. The data were subjected to confirmatory factor analysis, item analysis and reliability analysis. Criterion-related validity was analyzed using a multiple regression model on global empowerment and t-test. The results confirmed the original, four-factor structure obtained by Laschinger and colleagues (2004), supporting Kanter's structural empowerment theory. The psychometric properties of the Portuguese version of the CWEQ-II were adequate, supporting the use of this questionnaire in the workplace. Future research should investigate its construct validity and test the nomological network of the operationalized construct within the field of psychological well-being and in the context of the workplace.

Passion is defined as a strong inclination toward an activity the people like, that they find important, and in which they invest time and energy, like working. The aim of this study is to present evidence of the validity of the factor structure of the Spanish version of the Passion Scale. Exploratory factor analysis was carried out in a heterogeneous sample of 432 Spanish workers. The results confirmed the expected two-factor structure of passion in the workplace: obsessive passion and harmonious passion. A strong and positive correlation between harmonious passion and job satisfaction was observed, which is considered as an indicator of the positive nature of passion. Future research should investigate more extensively its construct validity with other organizational variables.

La pasión puede definirse como un fuerte impulso hacia una actividad que las personas gustan y consideran importante y a la que dedican tiempo y energía, como es el trabajo. El objetivo de este estudio es presentar datos de validez de la estructura factorial de la versión española de la Escala de Pasión. Se realizó un análisis factorial exploratorio sobre una muestra de 432 trabajadores españoles. Los resultados confirmaron la estructura bifactorial de la escala de pasión en el trabajo: pasión obsesiva y pasión armoniosa. Se observó una fuerte relación entre pasión armoniosa y satisfacción en el trabajo, lo que puede considerarse un indicador de la naturaleza positiva de la pasión. Futuros estudios deberán investigar con mayor profundidad la validez de criterio con otras variables organizacionales.

This paper presents validity evidences for the use of Spanish version of the Organizational Empowerment Scale (OES ) (Matthews, Diaz & Cole, 2003). The sample consisted of 305 employees from Spanish hotels. Reliability and factor structure (confirmatory factor analysis) of the scale were investigated. Results showed a multidimensional scale of three first-order factors, positive relations between organizational empowerment and job satisfaction and negative relations between organizational empowerment and burnout. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed and suggestions of further research are made.

El objetivo del estudio es presentar evidencias de validez de la adaptación al castellano de la Escala de Empowerment Organizacional (OES) de Matthews, Diaz y Cole (2003). La muestra empleada estuvo compuesta por 305 empleados de establecimientos hoteleros. Se investigó la fiabilidad de la escala y su estructura factorial (análisis factorial confirmatorio), y las relaciones del empowerment con satisfacción laboral y burnout. Los resultados revelaron una estructura multidimensional de tres factores primarios, una relación significativa y positiva entre empowerment organizacional y satisfacción laboral, y una relación significativa y negativa con burnout. Se incluyen interpretaciones y sugerencias para estudios futuros.