Date of Award
Spring 5-6-2027
Document Type
Dissertation (799 registration)
Degree Name
Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership
Department
Graduate Studies
Committee Chair
Kristen Carlson
Keywords
school nurse, JD-R model, emotional intelligence, job satisfaction, retention, organizational support
Abstract
School nurses face escalating job demands driven by increasing student health complexity, chronic condition management, and expanding public health responsibilities. Often serving as the sole healthcare professional within a school or district, they work in settings characterized by high autonomy, variable organizational support, and growing concerns about job satisfaction and retention. Limited empirical research has examined how personal and organizational resources jointly relate to school nurses’ intent to remain in practice. Guided by the Job Demands–Resources (JD–R) theory and the National Association of School Nurses School Nursing Practice Framework, this quantitative, correlational, cross-sectional study explored relationships among emotional intelligence, perceived organizational support, job satisfaction, and intent to stay among Minnesota licensed school nurses.
Data were collected over five weeks through a statewide online questionnaire, yielding 123 responses. Spearman’s rho correlations assessed associations among study variables. Job satisfaction demonstrated the strongest and most consistent association with intent to stay across subgroups, positioning it as the central factor linking workplace conditions to retention intentions. Perceived organizational support showed a strong relationship with job satisfaction and, in several contexts, with intent to stay, highlighting the importance of structural workplace resources in professional sustainability. Emotional intelligence was strongly associated with job satisfaction but showed limited direct association with intent to stay, suggesting that personal competencies enhance daily functioning without independently driving retention decisions. Overall, the results support the applicability of the JD–R framework to school nursing and highlight job satisfaction as the key factor associated with workforce stability.
Recommended Citation
Coudron, Kristin K., "Exploring the Relationships Between Emotional Intelligence, Perceived Organizational Support, Job Satisfaction, and Intent to Stay Among Minnesota School Nurses" (2027). Dissertations, Theses, and Projects. 1149.
https://red.mnstate.edu/thesis/1149
Included in
Educational Leadership Commons, Other Nursing Commons, Public Health and Community Nursing Commons