Reducing burnout in Australian nurses: the role of employee direct voice and managerial responsiveness

Burnout is a continuing concern for human resource management, as it affects not only employee well-being but also organisational performance. In particular, the nursing profession is widely recognised as a stressful occupation that leads to burnout. The present study examines the significance of employee voice and managerial responsiveness in reducing the levels of burnout experienced by nurses. Data were collected though an online survey of 762 Australian nurses. As hypothesised, the results showed that both employee voice and managerial responsiveness were negatively related to burnout. In addition, managerial responsiveness was found to fully mediate the relationship between employee voice and burnout. Implications of these findings are discussed in the context of developing interventions for dealing with burnout in the nursing profession.