J Korean Acad Nurs Adm.  2025 Jan;31(1):25-35. 10.11111/jkana.2025.31.1.25.

Effects of Clinical Nurses' Ethical Climate and Ethical Nursing Competence on Moral Distress

• Ha SM
• Yoon YJ

• KMID: 2566079
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.11111/jkana.2025.31.1.25

Abstract

Purpose
This study aimed to identify the effects of clinical nurses' ethical climate and ethical nursing competence on moral distress.
Methods
The participants were clinical nurses who provided direct nursing care; nurses with more than one year of work experience in general hospitals were targeted. The data were collected between January 3 and 19, 2024, and analyzed using t-test, analysis of variance, Games-Howell test, Pearson correlation coefficient, and multiple regression.
Results
Moral distress was significantly and negatively correlated with ethical climate and ethical nursing competence. Factors affecting the moral distress of clinical nurses included having a position of charge nurse or higher, total clinical experience of more than 20 years, turnover intention from current job due to ethical issues, hospital sub factors of the ethical climate, and ethical behavior sub factors of ethical nursing competence, showing 27.0% explanatory power.
Conclusion
Establishing a positive ethical climate and improving ethical nursing competence providing opportunities for nurses to raise and solve ethical issues will contribute to resolving nurses' ethical conflicts and reducing moral distress.

Keyword

Nurses; Ethics; Morals