This article has been accepted for publication and undergone full peer review but has not been through the copyediting, typesetting, pagination and proofreading process, which may lead to differences between this version and the Version of Record. Please cite this article as doi: 10.1111/JONM.12886 This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved Title page The manuscript title: Nurse leaders’ perceptions and experiences of leading evidence: a qualitative enquiry The major kay words: nursing leadership, evidence-based practice, qualitative study The word count: 4740 (excluding tables and figures) The authors and their institutional affiliations: Anne Lunden, PhD-student, MNS, RN, Nursing Director at Hospital District of Helsinki and Uusimaa, University of Eastern Finland, Faculty of Health Sciences, corresponding author. FIN – 70211 Kuopio Finland Europe anne.lunden2@gmail.com tel.:+358 503254228 Marianne Teräs, PhD, University Lecturer, Docent in Adult Education University of Stockholm, Department of Education Frescativägen 54 10691 University of Stockholm Sweden marianne.teras@edu.su.se tel.:+46-72 147 1276 Tarja Kvist, PhD, Docent, University Researcher, RN University of Eastern Finland, Faculty of Health Sciences PO Box 1627 FIN – 70211 Kuopio Finland Europe tarja.kvist@uef.fi tel.: +35840 3552623 Accepted Article Article type : Original Article