The Impact of Kobasa and Maddi Hardiness Model on Stress and Hardiness of Iranian Pediatric Nurses: A Clinical Trial Study

Pediatric nurses, who take care of ill children and interact with their exhausted and anxious parents, face more challenges for which some strategies must be considered to reduce tensions and improve mental health. This study was conducted to examine the effect of Kobasa and Maddi hardiness model on hardiness and perceived stress among nurses in pediatric units of a hospital in Isfahan – Iran in 2018.

Participants were 57 nurses selected from the staff of pediatric units. They were randomly assigned to intervention and control groups. Data collection was done by means of Kobasa Hardiness Inventory and perceived stress scale. The intervention group attended educational and exercise sessions for 3 months. Data were analyzed through descriptive (frequency, mean, and standard deviation) and analytical (Chi‑square, Fisher exact test, Mann–Whitney, and t‑tests) statistics.

Results of study revealed that before the intervention, the mean scores of hardiness and perceived stress of nurses were not significant. However, significant differences were observed after the intervention for hardiness and perceived stress (t2,98 p < 0.004, t 2,4 p < 0.02), respectively. The mean (SD) hardiness score in the intervention group increased from 65.06 (9.11) to 71.27 (7.44), whereas mean perceived stress score decreased from 26.54 (7.59) to 22.55 (8.39) after the intervention.

The implementation of Hardiness Kobasa and Maddi Model increased hardiness and decreased perceived stress of the nurses. Thus, nursing managers may implement the Kobasa and Maddi hardiness model before initiating their job and during continuing education.