Frontline nurse managers’ confidence and self-efficacy JENNIFER VAN DYK DNP, RN, NE-BC 1 , SANDRA L. SIEDLECKI PhD, RN 2 and JOYCE J. FITZPATRICK PhD, RN, FAAN 3 1 Director Nursing Education, 2 Senior Nurse Researcher, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH and 3 Elizabeth Brooks Ford Professor of Nursing, Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA Correspondence Jennifer Van Dyk Director Nursing Education Cleveland Clinic 9500 Euclid Avenue Cleveland, OH 44195 USA E-mail: vandykj@ccf.org VAN DYK J., SIEDLECKI S.L. & FITZPATRICK J.J. (2016) Journal of Nursing Management 24, 533–539. Frontline nurse managers’ confidence and self-efficacy Aim This study was focused on determining relationships between confidence levels and self-efficacy among nurse managers. Background Frontline nurse managers have a pivotal role in delivering high- quality patient care while managing the associated costs and resources. The competency and skill of nurse managers affect every aspect of patient care and staff well-being as nurse managers are largely responsible for creating work environments in which clinical nurses are able to provide high-quality, patient- centred, holistic care. Method A descriptive, correlational survey design was used; 85 nurse managers participated. Results Years in a formal leadership role and confidence scores were found to be significant predictors of self-efficacy scores. Conclusions Experience as a nurse manager is an important component of confidence and self-efficacy. Implications for Nursing Management There is a need to develop educational programmes for nurse managers to enhance their self-confidence and self-efficacy, and to maintain experienced nurse managers in the role. Keywords: nurse managers, confidence, self-efficacy Accepted for publication: 24 November 2015 Introduction Frontline nurse managers have a pivotal role in deliv- ering high-quality patient care while managing the associated costs and resources (Wong & Cummings 2007, Pearce 2008, Trus et al. 2012). The competency and skill of nurse managers affect every aspect of patient care and staff well-being as nurse managers are largely responsible for creating work environments in which clinical nurses are able to provide high-qual- ity, patient-centred, holistic care (Cummings 2006, McSherry et al. 2012). There have been several studies demonstrating the importance of the frontline nurse manager in estab- lishing a healthy workplace, improving nurse satisfac- tion, influencing recruitment and retention of clinical nurses, and improving care quality and patient safety (Espinoza et al. 2009, Duffield et al. 2010, Zori et al. 2010, Udod & Care 2011). Additionally, it has been demonstrated that frontline nurse managers play an important role in resolving interpersonal conflict among clinical nurses and facilitating relationship building (Kantek & Kavla 2007, Cathcart & Green- span 2012). Overall, the frontline nurse manager role is complex, essential and requires a broad managerial skill set. Unfortunately, many frontline managers practicing today were chosen for their clinical acumen and DOI: 10.1111/jonm.12355 ª 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd 533 Journal of Nursing Management, 2016, 24, 533–539