Unlocking the link between job crafting and individual work performance among Hospital nurses: the mediating effect of Strengths-based leadership

Nurses' individual work performance is central to delivering optimal patient care amid ongoing nursing shortages, making it important to identify factors that strengthen this performance. This study examines the mediating role of strengths-based leadership in the relationship between job crafting and individual work performance among nurses. A total of 209 staff nurses with more than one year of hospital experience were recruited from four hospitals in Kerala, India, between July and September 2026. Data were analysed using IBM SPSS 25.0 and Hayes' PROCESS macro. Job crafting showed a significant connection with strengths-based leadership (β=0.46, 95% CI=0.32-0.61), and strengths-based leadership encountered positive connection with individual work performance (β=0.14, 95% CI=0.03-0.24). Strengths-based leadership significantly mediated the relationship between job crafting and individual work performance (β=0.06,95% CI=0.01-0.13). The cross-sectional design limits causal inference, and the sample was drawn from a single Indian state, which may limit generalizability. Future research should employ longitudinal designs and test the model across other regions and healthcare systems. Hospital administrators in India and comparable healthcare contexts should invest in developing leaders' strengths-based capabilities, as this may help translate nurses' job crafting behaviours into measurable gains in individual performance and, ultimately, patient care. This study contributes to the job crafting and leadership literatures by identifying strengths-based leadership as a mechanism linking nurses' job crafting behaviours to their individual work performance, in an underrepresented healthcare setting. Keywords: Nurses; Hospitals; Individual work performance; Mediation analysis; Job crafting; Strengths-based leadership