Abstract:

Objective To explore the mediating effect of moral distress between workplace violence and empathy fatigue in clinical nurses. Methods A questionnaire survey of 1 196 clinical nurses was conducted by using the Workplace Violence Scale，the Chinese version of Nurse Moral Dilemma Scale and the Chinese version of the Empathy Fatigue Brief Scale. Results The incidence of workplace violence in last year was 39.4%. The score of moral distress was 27.00（10.00，59.75）. The total score of empathy fatigue among clinical nurses was 45.00（27.00，73.75）. Workplace violence had a positive effect on empathy fatigue（β=0.518，P<0.001），moral distress had a positive effect on empathy fatigue（β=0.354，P<0.001）. Meanwhile，moral distress played a partial mediating role between workplace violence and empathy fatigue（indirect effect value 0.099），accounting for 19.11% of the total effect. Conclusion Workplace violence and moral distress can directly and indirectly affect empathy fatigue，so managers need to take effective methods to reduce the frequency of workplace violence，guide nurses to reduce moral distress positively，and improve empathy fatigue ultimately.

Key words: Nurses, Workplace violence, Moral distress, Empathy fatigue, Mediating effect