Objectives: To formulate effective support strategies to reduce the turnover rate of
nursing staff and maintain the quality of care, this study analyzed the association between
social support, job satisfaction and turnover intention of nursing staff in a rural hospital.
Methods: The subject of this cross-sectional study was clinical nursing staff in a regional
hospital in Nantou County. The questionnaire included personal characteristics, social
support, job satisfaction and turnover intention. There were 278 valid questionnaires
collected, and the partial least squares (PLS) method was used to construct a predictive
model to examine the association and the mediating effect of study variables.
Results: Social support was positively associated with job satisfaction. Job satisfaction
and social support were negatively associated with turnover intention, and job satisfaction
partially mediated social support and turnover intention.
Conclusions: The higher the nursing staff perceives social support to be, the higher
their job satisfaction, and the lower the turnover intention.