DOI: https://doi.org/10.14710/nmjn.v11i3.39314

Workplace Assertiveness of Filipino Hospital Staff Nurses: A Cross-sectional Study

*Ryan Michael F. Oducado orcid scopus publons  -  West Visayas State University, Philippines
Hilda Clavel Montaño orcid  -  West Visayas State University, Philippines
Open Access Copyright (c) 2021 Nurse Media Journal of Nursing
Creative Commons License This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Citation Format:
Abstract

Background: Several studies have demonstrated the significance of assertiveness in the nursing profession. However, there is a lacuna in the literature regarding the level of workplace assertiveness of Filipino nurses.

Purpose: This study determined the workplace assertiveness towards nursing colleagues, nursing management personnel, medical doctors, and other members of the health team among hospital staff nurses.

Methods: The data in this cross-sectional study were collected from randomly selected staff nurses (n=223) involving two tertiary hospitals in the Philippines using the Workplace Assertive Behavior Questionnaire. Descriptive statistics and tests for differences were used to analyze the data.

Results: Results showed that staff nurses had moderate workplace assertiveness. They were less assertive towards the nursing management personnel, and were less likely to provide constructive criticisms and say no to requests. Assertiveness significantly varied based on employment status (p=.001), age (p=.046), years of nursing work experience (p=.037), and years in the present organization (p=.022). A sense of responsibility to patients was the main facilitator while reprimand and fear of repercussions from the nursing management personnel were the major barriers to assertive behaviors.

Conclusion: Personal and work environmental factors can inhibit or support assertiveness. This study highlighted some gaps in Filipino staff nurses’ assertiveness at work. Nursing management plays a pivotal role in nurses’ assertiveness. Efforts should be made to address the barriers and improve the assertiveness of staff nurses.

Fulltext View|Download
Keywords: Assertiveness; cross-sectional studies; nursing staff; Philippines; workplace
Funding: West Visayas State University – University Research and Development Center

Article Metrics:

Article Info
Section: Articles
Language : EN
Recent articles
Barriers and Challenges in Managing Hypertension in Belitung, Indonesia: A Qualitative Study Factors Influencing Depression among Indonesians during the COVID-19 Outbreak Psychometric Testing of the Technological Competency as Caring in Nursing Instrument – Revised (English Version Including a Practice Dimension) Editorial Front Matter Editorial Back Matter More recent articles
Most cited articles
Music and Music Intervention for Therapeutic Purposes in Patients with Ventilator Support; Gamelan Music Perspective A Systematic Review of the Selected Evidences on the Effectiveness of Inter-professional Education (IPE) in Developing Interprofessional Learning Environment Correlation between Coping Strategies and Quality of Life among Myocardial Infarction Patients in Nepal PSYCHIATRIC CLINICAL PLACEMENT UPON NURSING STUDENTS PERCEIVED KNOWLEDGE IN CARING FOR MENTALLY ILL Work-Related Fatigue Factors among Hospital Nurses: An Integrative Literature Review More cited articles
  1. Abdel-Aleem, M. M., Ibrahim, S. A. E. A., & El-Shimy, H. M. (2009). Factors affecting assertiveness among head nurses and staff nurses at Suez Canal University Hospital. Zagazig Nursing Journal, 5(2), 1-12. https://doi.org/10.21608/ZNJ.2009.40039
  2. Abed, G. A., El-Amrosy, S. H., & Atia, M. M. (2015). The effect of assertiveness training program on improving self-esteem of psychiatric nurses. Journal of Nursing Science, 1(1), 1-8
  3. Alberti, R. E., & Emmons, M. L. (2008). Your perfect right: A guide to assertive behavior (9th ed.). Impact Publishers
  4. Ames, D., Lee, A., & Wazlawek, A. (2017). Interpersonal assertiveness: Inside the balancing act. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 11(6), e12317. https://doi.org/10.1111/spc3.12317
  5. Amicone, K. F. & Miller, R. (2015). Assertiveness in nursing students. Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects, 8. https://ideaexchange.uakron.edu/honors_research_projects/8/
  6. Arslan, E., Akça, N. K., & Baser, M. (2013). Levels of assertiveness and peer pressure of nursing students. International Journal of Caring Sciences, 6(1), 78-86
  7. Binuja, P., & Nagarajaiah, A. (2020). Factors influencing assertiveness in nursing. International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications, 10(3), 829-835. http://dx.doi.org/10.29322/IJSRP.10.03.2020.p99101
  8. Broomhall, A. G., & Phillips, W. J. (2020). Collective harmony as a moderator of the association between other-referent upward counterfactual thinking and depression. Cogent Psychology, 7(1), 1714833. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311908.2020.1714833
  9. Brincat, M. A. (2012). Factors affecting assertiveness among nurses. [Master’s thesis, University of Malta]
  10. Bulut, H. K., Çalık, K. Y., Erdöl, H., & Yılmaz, G. (2018). Self-esteem and assertiveness levels of nursing students. The European Proceedings of Social & Behavioural Sciences. https://dx.doi.org/10.15405/epsbs.2019.04.02.101
  11. Chan, B., & Rowe, M. (2014). A cultural exchange: Assertive communication training in Bangkok. Asia Pacific Journal of Social Work and Development, 24(1-2), 45-58. https://doi.org/10.1080/02185385.2014.885208
  12. Garon, M. (2012). Speaking up, being heard: Registered nurses' perceptions of workplace communication. Journal of Nursing Management, 20(3), 361-371. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2834.2011.01296.x
  13. Hadavi, M., & Abdorrazagh Nejad, M. (2018). Assertive behaviors among nursing staff in a local hospital in Iran. Modern Care Journal. 15(2), e80765. https://doi.org/110.5812/modernc.80765
  14. Hamooleh, M. M., Iranshahi, M., Seyedfatemi, N., & Haghani, H. (2018). The relation between moral distress and assertiveness among nursing personnel. Medical Ethics Journal, 11(42), 59-68
  15. Ibrahim, S. A. E. A. (2011). Factors affecting assertiveness among student nurses. Nurse Education Today, 31(4), 356-360. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2010.07.006
  16. Ilyas, U., Afzal, M., Parveen, K., & Gilani, S. A. (2018). Assertive behavior of nurses and head nurses in government hospital Lahore, Pakistan. International Journal of Graduate Research and Review, 4(3), 77-87
  17. Kaur, D., Thapar, K., & Kaur, N. (2018). A study to assess the effectiveness of assertiveness training on level of assertiveness among staff nurses working in tertiary care hospital, Ludhiana, Punjab. International Journal of Scientific Research, 7(4), 19-20
  18. Lee, S. E., Choi, J., Lee, H., Sang, S., Lee, H., & Hong, H. C. (2021). Factors influencing nurses’ willingness to speak up regarding patient safety in East Asia: A systematic review. Risk Management and Healthcare Policy, 14, 1053. https://doi.org/10.2147/RMHP.S297349
  19. Lyndon, A. (2006). Communication and teamwork in patient care: How much can we learn from aviation? Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic & Neonatal Nursing, 35(4), 538-546. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1552-6909.2006.00074.x
  20. Ma, Z., & Jaeger, A. M. (2010). A comparative study of the influence of assertiveness on negotiation outcomes in Canada and China. Cross Cultural Management: An International Journal, 17(4), 333-346. https://doi.org/10.1108/13527601011086568
  21. Maheshwari, S. K., & Gill, K. K. (2015). Relationship of assertiveness and self esteem among nurses. International Journal of Health Sciences and Research, 5(6), 440-449
  22. Mansour, M., Jamama, A., Al-Madani, M., Mattukoyya, R., & Al-Anati, A. (2020). Reconciling assertive communication skills with undergraduate nursing education: Qualitative perspectives from British and Saudi newly-graduated nurses. Health Professions Education, 6(2), 176-186. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hpe.2020.02.001
  23. Mushtaq, B. (2018). Assertiveness in nursing. COJ Nursing & Health Care, 3(3), 272-273
  24. Oducado, R. M. F. (2020). Survey instrument validation rating scale. OSF Preprints. http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3789575
  25. Oducado, R. M. F. (2021a). Influence of self-esteem, psychological empowerment, and empowering leader behaviors on assertive behaviors of staff nurses. Belitung Nursing Journal, 7(3), 179-185. https://doi.org/10.33546/bnj.1424
  26. Oducado, R. M. F. (2021b). Nurse assertiveness repertoire skills: A training text and workbook (1st ed.). Central Books
  27. Okuyama, A., Wagner, C., & Bijnen, B. (2014). How we can enhance nurses’ assertiveness: A literature review. Journal of Nursing Care, 3(194), 2167-1168. https://doi.org/10.4172/2167-1168.1000194
  28. Omura, M., Levett‐Jones, T., & Stone, T. E. (2019). Evaluating the impact of an assertiveness communication training programme for Japanese nursing students: A quasi‐experimental study. Nursing Open, 6(2), 463-472. https://doi.org/10.1002/nop2.228
  29. Omura, M., Stone, T. E., Maguire, J., & Levett-Jones, T. (2018). Exploring Japanese nurses’ perceptions of the relevance and use of assertive communication in healthcare: A qualitative study informed by the Theory of Planned Behaviour. Nurse Education Today, 67, 100-107. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2018.05.004
  30. Ordonez, R. V., & Gandeza, N. (2004). Integrating traditional beliefs and modern medicine: Filipino nurses’ health beliefs, behaviors, and practices. Home Health Care Management & Practice, 17(1), 22-27. https://doi.org/10.1177/1084822304268152
  31. Rasetsoke, R. L. (2012). Assertive behaviour of professional nurses and nurse managers in unit management at academic hospital settings in the Pretoria Region [Master’s thesis, University of Johannesburg]
  32. Reese, J., Simmons, R., & Barnard, J. (2016). Assertion practices and beliefs among nurses and physicians on an inpatient pediatric medical unit. Hospital Pediatrics, 6(5), 275-281. http://dx.doi.org/10.1542/hpeds.2015-0123
  33. Sabatina, D., Begum, M., & Joseph, A. (2018). Assessment of assertiveness and self-esteem among BSc nursing 1st year students of a selected nursing college of Hyderabad. Journal of Psychiatric Nursing, 7(1), 5-8. http://dx.doi.org/10.21088/jpn.2277.9035.7118.1
  34. Sapar, L. C., & Oducado, R. M. F (2021). Revisiting job satisfaction and intention to stay: A cross-sectional study among hospital nurses in the Philippines. Nurse Media Journal of Nursing, 11(2), 133-143. https://doi.org/10.14710/nmjn.v11i2.36557
  35. Sreedevi P. A., Aswathy, B. L., & Roy, N. (2018). A correlational study on assertiveness and self esteem of undergraduate students of a selected college of nursing, Ernakulam. Indian Journal of Public Health Research and Development, 9(6), 49‐55. https://doi.org/10.5958/0976-5506.2018.00522.3
  36. Thrasher, J., McNeely, H., & Adrian, B. (2017). When nursing assertion stops. Critical Care Nursing Clinics of North America, 29(2), 167–176. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cnc.2017.01.004
  37. Timmins, F., & McCabe, C. (2005a). How assertive are nurses in the workplace? A preliminary pilot study. Journal of Nursing Management, 13(1), 61-67. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2834.2004.00492.x
  38. Timmins, F., & McCabe, C. (2005b). Nurses’ and midwives’ assertive behaviour in the workplace. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 51(1), 38-45. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2648.2005.03458.x
  39. Timmins, F., & McCabe, C. (2015). A survey of UK midwives’ views of their assertive behaviour in the workplace. Jacobs Journal of Nursing and Care, 1(2), 010

Last update:

No citation recorded.

Last update: 2023-12-06 08:45:23

No citation recorded.