Structural Model of Health Promoting Behaviors of General Hospital Nurses

Purpose: This study aimed to test and validate a structural model explaining health promoting behaviors among nurses working in general hospitals and to identify key factors influencing health promoting behaviors.Methods: A hypothetical model was constructed based on the Theory of Planned Behavior and prior empirical studies. Health consciousness, social support, and self-efficacy were specified as exogenous variables, while behavior intention and health promoting behaviors were treated as endogenous variables. Data were collected from June 8 to June 24, 2024, from 345 nurses employed at three general hospitals in a G metropolitan city. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was conducted using SPSS Statistics 26.0 and SmartPLS 4.0.9.6 to assess model fit and test the hypotheses.Results: The PLSc model showed SRMR=.06, dULS=1.13 and dG=.43, but did not meet the predefined criterion for model fit based on dULS; therefore, PLS-SEM was used for the final analysis. VIF values confirmed the absence of multicollinearity. The adjusted R² for health promoting behaviors was 58%. Health consciousness had the strongest effect, followed by social support, self-efficacy, and behavior intention. Predictive relevance (Q²) ranged from .36 to .56. Six of the seven hypotheses were supported.Conclusion: Therefore, in nursing education and practice, it is necessary to develop and apply strategic interventions that enhance health consciousness and self-efficacy and strengthen social support and behavior intention.