Effectiveness of Ethical Values in Nurses Quality of Work Life with the Mediating Role of Professional Ethics

Improving quality of work life (QWL) has an important impact on attracting and retaining employees. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the effect of organizational ethical values on QWL in relation to the mediating role of professional ethics

This is an applied, descriptive-analytical study was carried out in Zanjan governmental hospitals. A number of 266 nurses were enrolled as the sample size using Cochran formula. Brooks and Anderson's (2005) quality of work life survey, Ghasemzadeh et al. (2015) questionarie for professional ethics were used to collect data. Moreover, another questionnaire was designed for assessing moral values. The content validity of questionarie was assessed using expert's opinions and its reliability was tested by Cronbach alpha. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM methodology) and SmartPLS2 software were used in data analysis.

Organizational ethical values showed a positive and significant effect on the QWL (B=0.376, t=4.365) and professional ethics (B=0.479, t=7.479). However, no significant relationship was observed between the QWL and professional ethics (B=0.038, t=0.420). Moreover, the mediating role of professional ethics in relation to the QWL and organizational ethical values was not confirmed (t<1.96) in this study.

Based on the results, the ethical values positively affect the QWL among nurses. Therefore, decision makers and hospital managers can design and implement strategies foster and enhance ethical climates to increase nurses' commitment and satisfaction.