Effects of Nurses’ Irrational Beliefs and Social Anxiety on Assertiveness: A Cross-Sectional Descriptive Correlational Study

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the factors influencing nurses' assertiveness through the lens of cognitive behavioral theory.Methods: Convenience sampling was employed to recruit nurses from a tertiary care university hospital in Seoul, South Korea, for this cross-sectional descriptive correlational study. Data were gathered using a self-administered online questionnaire distributed via the hospital's internal online portal (open bulletin board), resulting in a final sample of 118 nurses (92.4% female, mean age=28.7 years). Data analysis was conducted using R version 4.3.1.Results: Assertiveness was found to be negatively correlated with both irrational beliefs (r=-.57) and social anxiety (r=-.56), while a positive correlation existed between irrational beliefs and social anxiety (r=.67). Multiple regression analysis revealed that irrational beliefs (β=-.36) and social anxiety (β=-.32) were significant predictors of assertiveness, collectively accounting for 38% of the variance after adjusting for demographic variables.Conclusion: This study illustrated that cognitive behavioral theory effectively elucidates the factors influencing nurses' assertiveness. Given that social anxiety emerged as a strong predictor, assertiveness training should address both cognitive and emotional aspects.