Assessment of relationship between emotional intelligence and conflict resolution among nurse managers at tertiary Health Institutions of North Eastern States of Nigeria

Abstract

Conflict in health care settings may be effectively managed if nurse managers possess conflict management skills such as reconciliation, listening, and effective communication to bring individuals closer and work together to find fair solutions and meet balanced needs. The study aimed at identifying the relationship between emotional intelligence and conflict resolution among nurse managers at tertiary Health Facilities, in the Northern States of Nigeria. The objectives of the study are to assess the level of emotional intelligence among nurse managers, also to identify the most common types of conflict, determine the causes of conflict, determine the conflict resolution strategies applied by the nurse managers and to identify relationship between emotional intelligence and conflict resolution among nurse managers in tertiary health institutions of North Eastern States. A mixed methods research design (quantitative and qualitative methods) was used. A total of 188 nurse managers and three Head Nursing Services departments formed the sample size. The nurse managers were given structured questionnaires and the Head of the Nursing Services department was interviewed (key informant interview). Three instruments were employed for data collection; Interview Guide, Structured Questionnaire and Participants Demographics Sheet. A simple random sampling technique was used for the study. The obtained data were coded and computed in an SPSS Version 26 and analyzed using percentages, mean and standard deviation for descriptive statistics while the Pearson Correlation Coefficient was used for the inferential statistics. The result of the study revealed that most of the nurse managers have a fair level of emotional intelligence when dealing with conflict among nurse managers. It also revealed that the most common type of conflict among nurses was related to environmental factors. The working environment was the highest cause of conflict among nurses. Social skill strategy was mostly used in conflict resolution. The study revealed that there was no significant relationship between years of experience and conflict resolution r=0.173. Based on the findings the researcher concluded that most of the respondents highly make use of social awareness in the application of emotional intelligence in conflict resolution, most of the causes of conflict among nurses were related to a working environment, and social skills were mostly used in conflict resolution among nurses. Based on the findings of the study, the researcher recommended that other sources of conflict management should be identified for nurse managers to manage conflict, nurse managers should use the skills they have to solve problems and conflict management to be part of a school of nursing curriculum.