Resonant leadership training programme and its effect on organisational citizenship behaviour among first-line nurse managers

Background Resonant leadership helps nurse managers build positive, emotionally intelligent relationships that support healthy work environments. Training in this leadership style may improve their organisational citizenship behaviours, enhancing teamwork and overall performance. Aim This research designed to evaluate the effect of a resonant leadership training programme on organisational citizenship behaviour (OCB) among first-line nurse managers. Methods A quasi-experimental one-group pretest–posttest and follow-up design was used to evaluate a structured training programme at Ain Shams University Specialized Hospital (ASUSH), affiliated to Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt. The sample included all available first-line nurse managers ( n = 50). Data were gathered using validated tools to assess knowledge, perception of resonant leadership, and organisational citizenship behaviour at three timepoints (pretest, posttest, 3-month follow-up). Results Findings indicated that first-line nurse managers demonstrated unsatisfactory levels of knowledge and low perception regarding resonant leadership during the pre-intervention phase. However, significant improvements were observed in both knowledge and perceptions immediately post-intervention, with a slight decline noted during the follow-up phase. Moreover, first-line nurse managers initially exhibited mostly low to moderate levels of OCB across all dimensions. Following the programme, high-level OCB increased markedly, with improvements largely maintained at follow-up. Differences across the three phases were highly statistically significant ( p < 0.001). Cohen’s d values showed very large effect sizes between pre- and post-programme assessments and moderate effect sizes between post-programme and follow-up assessments, demonstrating a strong and lasting impact of the intervention. Conclusion The implementation of a resonant leadership training programme observed improvements in a one-group pretest-posttest design in the knowledge and perception of first-line nurse managers, positively influencing their organisational citizenship behaviours. These findings support the need for ongoing training and institutional support to embed resonant leadership practices within healthcare management structures.