Leader-Member Exchange (L-MX) Style of first-line Nurse Managers and its relationship with Work Engagement from Nurses’ Perspective

Abstract

Background: The Leader-Member Exchange (LMX) is one of the most prominenttheories that deal with the dual relationship between a leader and subordinates. It hasgained a lot of attention from researchers because of its consequences on employees’work engagement. Aim: The study aimed to identify the leader-member exchange(LMX) style of first-line nurse managers (FLNMS) and its relationship with workengagement from nurses’ perspective. Setting: The study was conducted atAlexandria’s main university hospital in all intensive care units (N=15), and critical careunits (N=10). Subjects: All nurses (n = 300) working at Intensive care units (N=230)and critical care units (N=70) who have direct contact with patients, provide direct andindirect care to them, with work years of experience not least one year. Tools: Two toolswere used to collect the data; the first tool was the Multidimensional Model of LMX(LMX-MDM) to measure nurses’ perception of the leader-member exchangerelationship. The second tool was the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) toassess the work engagement level among nurses from their perspective. Results: Thestudy findings show a strong positive relationship between employees and managerswith a mean and percent score of 80.97 ± 17.71, which significantly influences workengagement. The "Professional Respect" dimension received the highest mean andpercent score of (83.25 ± 19.56) followed by the "Loyalty" dimension with a mean andpercent score of (80.81 ± 19.47), while the "Contribution" dimension has a slightly lowerpercent score (79.17 ± 19.45). Also, the overall perception of nurses towards their workengagement was positive, with a mean score of 44.83 ± 6.25 and a mean percent of81.85 ± 18.40. The mean percentage score for vigor was the highest at 81.08% ± 20.27,followed by the dimensions of dedication and absorption.80.50 ± 19.51. Conclusion:The study underscores the importance of first-line nurse managers' leader-memberexchange (LMX) style and its significant relationship with work engagement from thenurses' perspective. This emphasizes the need for nurse managers to cultivate respectfuland appreciative relationships with their staff to boost engagement levels.Recommendations: Training nurse leaders in communication and relationshipbuildingskills can help create a more engaging workplace culture, motivating nursingstaff to participate in organizational initiatives.