The nurse manager support process in the work–family conflict of clinical nurses: a qualitative study

Abstract

Background: Nurses are exposed to work–family conflict because of the high expectations associated with the workplace and family demands. Nurse managers’ support for work–family conflict requires theoretical principles. Aims: The current study explores managers’ experiences of work–life conflict and how they manage this. Methods: Grounded theory is used to explain the theoretical principles of nursing managers’ support to clinical nurses. Participants included 20 managers and 2 clinical nurses working in one hospital. The data collection method used unstructured interviews. Sampling was first purposive and then theoretical, and data analysis was carried out using Corbin and Strauss’s approach. Results: Participants’ primary concern was the threat to their organisational position, and they used a functional-exchangeable conservation strategy to consolidate their own positions. The strategy resulted in the consolidation of managers’ and nurses’ positions. Two factors were identified as influencing nurse managers’ strategies, namely ‘the sense of insecurity in the functional position’ with a deterrent effect, and ‘cooperative atmosphere’ as a facilitator with a positive effect. Conclusion: The most important supportive strategy used by nurse managers in the work–family conflict of clinical nurses was based on ‘functional-exchangeable conservation’ between themselves and the nursing staff. Functional- exchangeable protection is a type of protection of human resources by the manager. In this exchange, to solve the conflict between work and family for the nurse, the nursing manager wants to maintain their managerial position by solving the nurse’s problem. Both of them benefit from this exchange. The theory of functional-exchangeable protection may provide the necessary background for the development of a prescriptive theory to minimise nurses’ worries about family matters. Flexible work schedules may help nurses resolve work-family conflict and so provide better care and reduce work errors. The concept of functional-exchangeable protection and its subclasses may be helpful in preparing policies to support clinical nurses through implementing flexible work schedules, increasing nurses’ motivation and fulfilling the family role of nurses.