Job Stress and Marital Satisfaction in Married Nurses: The Mediating Role of Self-Regulation in Relationship

It is well acknowledged that the stress of work can influence marriage outcomes. Some jobs such as working in a hospital and dealing with patients are very stressful. However, despite the emphasis on the role of work stress in different areas and marital satisfaction in previous research, there is little information about the effect of adaptive processes such as self-regulation in the relationship on nurses marital satisfaction. The Vulnerability-Stress-Adaptation Model implies that a successful adaptive process can possibly help individuals mitigate stressful events and raise satisfaction in marriage. the current study aimed to investigate whether the job stress of married nurses can influence their marital satisfaction, and also to examine the mediating role of relationship self-regulation. A total of 252 married nurses from nine governmental and five private hospitals in Tehran were participated. Hospitals were selected by convenient sampling and voluntary to contribute. To collect data, Relationship Assessment Scale (RAS), Relationship Self-Regulation (RSR) and the Job-Related Tension Index (JRTI) were given to volunteer nurses who agreed to complete the questionnaires. The results indicated a significant negative association of job stress with marital satisfaction and a positive relationship of relationship self-regulation with marital satisfaction. Also, it was confirmed that relationship self-regulation has a mediating role in the relationship between job stress and marital satisfaction. The current study showed how the adaptive process may help to increase marital satisfaction in a stressful environment among married nurses.