2008 Volume 11 Issue 1 Pages 53-58
This study examined the relationships among five types of significance of work and basic attributes in public health nurses working for administrative agencies. A questionnaire was mailed to all 750 such public health nurses in two prefectures. With 422 valid responses (56.3%), multiple regression analysis was performed according to the stepwise procedure for each type of significance of work in these public health nurses. The basic attributes selected for each type of significance of work and the corresponding coefficients of determination (R2) with the degree of freedom adjusted were as follows: orientation toward social acceptance was explained by a longer experience as a public health nurse (R2 = 0.034); orientation toward cooperation with the community was explained by being assigned to a section unrelated to healthcare (R2 = 0.007); orientation toward leadership was explained by a longer experience as a public health nurse and having a post (R2 = 0.221); orientation toward stability as well as challenge was explained by an experience of transfer and a limited experience as a public health nurse (R2 = 0.029); and orientation toward service and contribution was not explained by any basic attribute. Some had significance of work associated with the duration of practice in which deepening expertise and the importance of extensive responsibility were recognized inside and outside the organization, while others had significance of work possibly affected by assigned departments and transfer experiences. However, their specific effects could not be explained. Among the five types of significance of work for public health nurses, orientation toward leadership showed the strongest relationship with certain basic attributes, with a relatively large R2 value of about 20% compared to less than 10% for the others. Further investigations should be conducted using a study design which considers both internal and external factors that may affect the significance of work.
