Organizational Commitment of Korean American Nurses: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Background:

Studies on reducing the turnover of foreign-educated nurses (FENs) can help address the nursing shortage in the United States. Organizational commitment and associated factors have been explored in relation to lower turnover. Nursing researchers have identified job satisfaction, psychological contract breach, person-organization fit, and person-work setting fit as major factors in enhancing nurses’ organizational commitment. Research on the organizational commitment of Korean American (KA) nurses would provide insights into reducing turnover among FENs.

Objectives:

This study identifies some of the key factors that significantly enhance the organizational commitment of KA nurses.

Methods:

A cross-sectional study conducted with a survey was employed. One hundred fifty-one KA nurses working in US healthcare organizations participated in the study. Analysis of variance, Pearson correlation, and multiple linear regression analyses were used to identify the key factors associated with nurses’ organizational commitment.

Results:

Nurses with higher job satisfaction, lower perception of psychological contract breach, and higher perception of person-organization fit display a stronger organizational commitment. Other factors associated with organizational commitment are age and geographical work location. The adjusted R² of the 5 factors included in the research model is 0.62 (F_[11,139] = 22.78, P = .001).

Conclusions:

Strategies are needed to enhance job satisfaction and perceived person-organization fit and to reduce psychological contract breach for KA and other FENs. The strategies should include comprehensive training and job-enculturation programs, systematic efforts for clear communication, and attention to respect and fairness for KA and other FENs.