Abstract
Introduction: Nurses often experience high levels of psychological stress due to the demanding nature of their profession, which can adversely affect their mental and physical health. Understanding the psychological mechanisms that mediate this relationship is crucial for improving nurses’ health outcomes. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the relationship between perceived stress and general health among nurses, focusing on the mediating roles of metacognitive beliefs and negative social problem-solving strategies.
Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 414 nurses in Mazandaran Province who were selected based on convenience sampling. Data were collected using the Perceived Stress Scale, Metacognition Questionnaire (MCQ-30), Social Problem-Solving Questionnaire, and General Health Questionnaire-28 (GHQ-28). Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) with Path Analysis was performed.
Results: Perceived stress showed significant correlations (P≤0.05) with metacognitive beliefs (r=0.28), negative problem-solving (r=0.38), and general health components, including physical problems (r=0.35), anxiety (r=0.48), social problems (r=-0.20), and depression (r=0.37). Bootstrap analysis confirmed significant indirect effects of perceived stress, through metacognitive beliefs, on negative social problem-solving (β=0.04), depression (β=0.14), social dysfunction (β=-0.12), anxiety (β=0.05), and physical symptoms (β=0.03) (P<0.05). Additionally, metacognitive beliefs had significant indirect effects on depression (β=0.04) and social dysfunction (β=-0.05) (P<0.05).
Conclusion: The findings suggested that experiencing stress can influence various components of nurses’ general health such as anxiety, depression, and physical health. These effects are mediated by both positive and negative metacognitive beliefs in interaction with various social problem-solving strategies. Furthermore, certain negative problem-solving strategies may increase social functioning under stressful situations.