The effects of moral distress on burnout and mental well-being across healthcare and care occupations
Do age and work resources matter
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 4227238 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Tímea Zsuzsanna Popucza (0009-0009-0067-0876, University of Gävle), Mårten Eriksson (0000-0002-4276-7774, University of Gävle) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Pages | 13591053251369373-13591053251369373 |
| Publication date | 2025-09-23 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of Health Psychology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1359-1053 • E-ISSN: 1461-7277 |
| Publisher | SAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1177/13591053251369373 |
| PMID | 40988356 |
| OpenAlex | W4414483379 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 40 |
This study investigated how moral distress contributed to burnout and mental well-being among 1318 healthcare and care professionals in Sweden using cross-sectional survey data and partial least squares structural equation modeling. Moral distress significantly increased both exhaustion and disengagement, which in turn negatively impacted mental well-being. Mediation analyses confirmed that burnout processes mediated the relationship between moral distress and mental well-being. Job control buffered the moral distress-exhaustion link, while collegial support had no effect. Linear moderation by age was non-significant, but curvilinear analysis suggested that moral distress affects burnout differently across ages. Age-group comparisons revealed that professionals under 30 and over 60 were most vulnerable to moral distress-related burnout. These findings highlight the need for preventive, age-sensitive strategies and workplace interventions that reduce moral distress and strengthen protective resources. The Swedish version of the Moral Distress Scale was validated across healthcare and care groups
Ethics in medical practice · Healthcare cost, quality, practices · Healthcare professionals’ stress and burnout
Job resources boost work engagement, particularly when job demands are high.
Introduction to special issue on burnout and health
The construct validity of an alternative measure of burnout
The Third Version of the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire
Socioemotional Selectivity Theory and the Regulation of Emotion in the Second Half of Life
A primer on partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM)
The Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale (WEMWBS)
Common method biases in behavioral research
Statistical power analyses using G*Power 3.1
Common Method Bias in PLS-SEM
The Job Demands‐Resources model
The job demands-resources model of burnout.
Designing Sustainable Working Lives and Environments
Validation of the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire Version III and Establishment of Benchmarks for Psychosocial Risk Management in Sweden
When healthcare professionals cannot do the right thing
Age and Emotions in Organizations
The Relationships between Stress, Burnout, Mental Health and Well-Being in Social Workers
The measurement of experienced burnout
Strength and vulnerability integration
Overestimating prevalence? Rethinking boundaries and confounders of moral distress
| Highly cited | No |
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