A multi‐center cross‐sectional study on midwives' self‐efficacy and influencing factors

Aim Healthcare professionals who lack self‐efficacy may fail to cope with stressful situations, which increases job burnout and turnout. Self‐efficacy of midwives with high workload may affect the quality of service. However, little is known about midwives' self‐efficacy and related factors. This study aimed to examine the level and influencing factors of self‐efficacy among midwives, and to assess the relationships between their self‐efficacy and job burnout. Methods This was a multi‐center cross‐sectional study involving 700 midwives from 33 hospitals in China. Data were collected by three self‐administered questionnaires, including a socio‐demographic questionnaire, General Self‐Efficacy Scale and Maslach Burnout Inventory. Pearson correlation was utilized to analyze the association of self‐efficacy with job burnout. A multiple linear regression model was performed to identify variables associated with midwives' self‐efficacy. Results The score of self‐efficacy among Chinese midwives was 24.34 ± 5.28. The incidence of job burnout was 52.9%. The influencing factors of self‐efficacy among midwives were low personal accomplishment, emotional exhaustion, length of service, interest in the midwifery field, marital status and whether they came from a one‐child family or not. Conclusions Chinese midwives had a moderate level of self‐efficacy which easily led to job burnout. Also, several personal‐related and work‐related factors would affect the self‐efficacy of midwives. Nursing managers are called on to attach importance to self‐efficacy of midwives and provide effective interventions to improve their self‐efficacy.