Exploring the relationship between social competence, behavioral emotion regulation and health anxiety of nurses in psychiatric ward: The mediating role of cognitive distortions

Nurses working in the psychiatric ward are under high levels of stress. Such stress can lead to various physical, psychological, and behavioral issues. The current study aimed to explore the connection between social competence, behavioral emotion regulation, and health anxiety among psychiatric nurses, while also taking into account the mediating effects of cognitive distortions. The statistical population for this research consisted of all nurses employed in the psychiatric wards of Ardabil hospitals in 2024. A total of 250 nurses were selected using purposive sampling. The study made use of the Health Anxiety Questionnaire, Social Competence Questionnaire, Behavioral Emotion Regulation Questionnaire, and Cognitive Distortions Questionnaire for data collection. Social competence and positive behavioral emotion regulation have a direct negative effect on nurses’ health anxiety, while negative behavioral emotion regulation and cognitive distortions have a direct positive impact; moreover, social competence and behavioral emotion regulation through cognitive distortions have an indirect effect on nurses’ health anxiety (p < 0.05). Therefore, social competence, behavioral emotion regulation, and cognitive distortions are significant predictors of nurses’ health anxiety. Consequently, hospital officials can reduce the health anxiety of nurses and improve the quality of nursing services by identifying the factors affecting the reduction of social competence, ineffective emotion regulation strategies, and cognitive distortions in nurses in the psychiatric ward.