Occupational Role Stress and Associated Factors Among Nurses in Southeast Iran

Occupational role stress is one of the important factors affecting nurses’ occupational stress and quality of life (QOL). This study aimed to explore occupational role stress and associated factors among nurses in Zahedan, Southeast Iran. This cross-sectional study was conducted from April to June 2023. The study sample consisted of 260 nurses from hospitals affiliated with Zahedan University of Medical Sciences selected through a multistage sampling method. Data on nurses’ occupational role stress, sociodemographic characteristics, lifestyle, sleep quality, and work-related factors were collected. A general linear regression model was applied to determine the factors associated with occupational role stress. The findings revealed that the mean total occupational role stress score was 141.41. Among the occupational role stress subscales, nurses had higher mean scores in role overload, role inadequacy, and responsibility. Total occupational role stress score was significantly higher in university graduate nurses than in those holding a high school diploma (p=0.005). Moreover, occupational role stress was significantly higher in nurses who slept for 4–6 h (p=0.011) and more than 8 h (p=0.017) compared to those who slept for 7–8 h a day. In addition, occupational role stress was also significantly higher in nurses with poor sleep quality (p=0.03). In addition, nurses who worked more than 8 h a day reported significantly higher occupational role stress (p=0.008). There was no statistically significant association between occupational role stress with age, gender, marital status, BMI, exercise, having a second job, shift work, ward assignment, and work experience. The findings emphasize the necessity of tailored interventions for managing occupational role stress in nurses with higher education and longer work hours. Improving work conditions, along with promoting healthy sleep habits, is a crucial step in reducing occupational role stress.