Date
8-29-2025
Department
School of Nursing
Degree
Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing (PhD)
Chair
Shelley Blackwood
Keywords
burnout, student evaluation of teaching, self-efficacy, fear of negative evaluation, nursing faculty
Disciplines
Higher Education | Nursing
Recommended Citation
Kelly, Sarah Murray, "Self-Efficacy and Burnout of Nursing Faculty: The Mediating Role of Fear of Negative Evaluation" (2025). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects. 7400.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/7400
Abstract
The contents of this manuscript include a dissertation of a survey research study using the theoretical models of self-efficacy and burnout. The quantitative study used mediation analysis to explore the relationship between self-efficacy and burnout, with fear of negative evaluation as a mediator. Fear of negative evaluation was measured using the Brief Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale-Revised; self-efficacy was calculated using the General Self-Efficacy Scale; and burnout was measured using the Oldenburg Burnout Inventory. The study drew a sample of 98 academic nurse educators (N = 98) who were evaluated by student evaluations of teaching. The sample included educators who had obtained a master’s degree (n = 49), a doctoral degree (n = 38), a bachelor's degree (n = 10), and an associate degree (n =1). Most educators stated their quantitative scores were above average (n = 57) and average (n = 40). The survey results were analyzed using PROCESS Macro model 4, a simple mediation analysis. The study failed to reject the null hypotheses. On average, higher self-efficacy scores were associated with a lower fear of negative evaluation, but this finding was not statistically significant (b = -0.20, p > 0.05). The study examined the relationship between fear of negative evaluation and burnout and was found not to be significant (b = 0.93, p > 0.05). Fear of negative evaluation did not mediate the relationship between self-efficacy and burnout in the chosen sample. The research study aimed to contribute to the body of knowledge on retaining nursing faculty and promoting a positive work environment for academic nurse educators. Further research is needed to explore the impact of student evaluations of teaching on nursing faculty confidence and burnout.
