The relationship between work environment perception and job burnout among junior nurses in designated hospitals for public health emergencies: An analysis of the mediating effect of occupational benefits

The perceptions of the work environment and levels of job burnout among junior nurses in designated hospitals for public health emergencies directly affect nursing quality and emergency response ability. While most existing studies focus on occupational identity, the mediating effect of occupational benefits in high-pressure environments remain underexplored. This study aims to explore the relationship between work environment perception and job burnout among junior nurses in designated hospitals for public health emergencies and to analyze the mediating effect of occupational benefits, providing nursing managers with solid evidence for improving the work environment and enhancing job satisfaction and well-being among junior nurses. We used convenience sampling to select 243 junior nurses from a designated hospitals for public health emergencies for the study. Data were collected using the work environment perception scale, job burnout scale, and occupational benefits scale, and the relationships among variables were analyzed using analysis of the mediating effect. A total of 243 junior nurses completed the survey. There was a negative correlation between work environment perception and job burnout (r = -0.619, P < 0.01), occupational benefits were also negatively correlated with job burnout (r = -0.557, P < 0.01), while they were positively correlated with work environment perception (r = 0.498, P < 0.01). The results of the mediating effect analysis showed that occupational benefits played a partial mediating role between work environment perception and job burnout, accounting for 26.84% of the total effect. The work environment perception of junior nurses in designated hospitals for public health emergencies is closely related to their level of job burnout, with occupational benefits acting as a mediator. Nursing managers should pay attention to the work environment perception of junior nurses while also focusing on cultivating their occupational benefits to effectively lower job burnout and boost job satisfaction and nursing quality.