Job embeddedness and nurse retention.
BACKGROUND
Nurse retention is a different way of conceptualizing the employer-employee relationship when compared with turnover. Job embeddedness (JE), a construct based on retention, represents the sum of reasons why employees remain at their jobs. However, JE has not been investigated in relation to locale (urban or rural) or exclusively with a sample of registered nurses (RNs). The purpose of this study was to determine what factors (JE, age, gender, locale, and income) help predict nurse retention.


METHODS
A cross-sectional mailed survey design was used with RNs in different locales (urban or rural). Job embeddedness was measured by the score on the composite, standardized instrument. Nurse retention was measured by self-report items concerning intent to stay.


RESULTS
A response rate of 49.3% was obtained. The typical respondent was female (96.1%), white, non-Hispanic (87.4%), and married (74.9%). Age and JE were predictive of nurse retention and accounted for 26% of the explained variance in intent to stay. Although age was a significant predictor of intent to stay, it accounted for only 1.4% of the variance while JE accounted for 24.6% of the variance of nurse retention (as measured by intent to stay).


CONCLUSIONS
Older, more "embedded" nurses are more likely to remain employed in their current organization. Based on these findings, JE may form the basis for the development of an effective nurse retention program.
Reitz
O Ed
OE
Advanced Midwest Nursing Placement, Hudson, Illinois 61265, USA.
Anderson
Mary Ann
MA
Hill
Pamela D
PD
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007087:Illinois; D007182:Income; D033182:Intention; D007588:Job Satisfaction; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015401:Nursing Administration Research; D015404:Nursing Methodology Research; D009740:Nursing Staff / Q000193:education / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000523:psychology*; D010558:Personnel Loyalty; D010563:Personnel Turnover / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires