Registered nurses' perceptions of rewarding and its significance

Abstract

Aim: To examine reward type preferences and their relationships with the significance of rewarding perceived by registered nurses in Finland.

Background: Previous studies have found relationships between nurses' rewarding and their motivation at work, job satisfaction and organisational commitment.

Methods: Data were collected in a cross-sectional, descriptive, questionnaire survey from 402 registered nurses using the Registered Nurses' Perceptions of Rewarding Scale in 2015, and analysed with descriptive and multivariate statistical methods.

Results: Registered nurses assigned slightly higher values to several non-financial than to financial rewards. The non-financial reward types appreciation and feedback from work community, worktime arrangements, work content, and opportunity to develop, influence and participate were highly related to the significance of rewarding.

Conclusions: We identified various rewards that registered nurses value, and indications that providing an appropriate array of rewards, particularly non-financial rewards, is a highly beneficial element of nursing management.

Implications for nursing management: It is important to understand the value of rewards for nursing management. Nurse managers should offer diverse rewards to their registered nurses to promote excellent performance and to help efforts to secure and maintain high-quality, safe patient care. The use of appropriate rewards is especially crucial to improving registered nurses' reward satisfaction and job satisfaction globally in the nursing profession.

Keywords: nursing management; perception; registered nurse; rewarding.