Psychological empowerment at the workplace as a predictor of ill health

Both theoretical arguments and empirical findings imply a negative relationship between psychological empowerment and ill health. The aim of the present study was to expand the empirical knowledge concerning the relationship between psychological empowerment at the workplace and three aspects of ill health. A total of 2011 registered and assistant nurses completed a questionnaire consisting of scales measuring psychological empowerment at the workplace, general mental health, burnout, and sick leave. Hierarchical multiple linear regression analyses were performed using the three aspects of ill health as the criterion variables, age, gender, and profession as the control variables and the four empowerment-dimensions as the predictor variables. The four empowerment-dimensions explained 2–18% of the variation among the nurses with regard to the three types of ill-health measures. The meaning dimension and the competence dimension were most negatively related to ill health. Greater psychological empowerment at work corresponds generally to less ill health. Psychological empowerment at work may be one of the many possible factors that provide protection against ill health.