Adi Husada Nursing Journal
Vol 12 No 1 (2026): Adi Husada Nursing Journal

Head Nurse Leadership and Blame Culture Among Nurses: A Cross-Sectional Study in a Public Hospital

Giovanni Iga Firmanda (Institut Ilmu Kesehatan Bhakti Wiyata Kediri)
Rita Dewi Sunarno (Institut Ilmu Kesehatan Bhakti Wiyata Kediri)
Wahyu Nur Pratiwi (Institut Ilmu Kesehatan Bhakti Wiyata Kediri)
Aries Wahyuningsih (STIKES RS Baptis Kediri)
Moch Gandung Satriya (UOBK RSUD SLG Kediri, Universitas Ganesha Pratama)



Article Info

Publish Date
26 May 2026

Abstract

Head nurse leadership plays an important role in shaping organizational culture and influencing nurses’ perceptions of psychological safety in hospital settings. Ineffective leadership may contribute to fear-based work environments, reduced psychological safety, and the emergence of a blame culture among nurses, which can hinder open communication and learning from clinical errors. This study aimed to examine the relationship between head nurse leadership and blame culture among nurses in a public hospital. A quantitative analytic study with a cross-sectional design was conducted involving 220 nurses recruited from inpatient, intensive care, emergency, and outpatient units of a public hospital. Data were collected using structured questionnaires measuring perceived overall head nurse leadership and blame culture in clinical practice. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Pearson correlation analysis using SPSS version 26. The results showed that overall head nurse leadership was perceived at a moderately high level (3.62 ± 0.54), while blame culture was categorized as moderate (3.41 ± 0.63). Pearson correlation analysis demonstrated a significant moderate negative relationship between head nurse leadership and blame culture (r = -0.528, p = 0.001), indicating that higher perceived leadership was associated with lower levels of blame culture among nurses. These findings highlight the importance of strengthening effective and supportive leadership practices among head nurses to promote a psychologically safe and learning-oriented organizational culture in hospital settings.

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Journal Info

Abbrev

AHNJ

Publisher

Subject

Nursing Public Health

Description

Adi Husada Nursing Journal (AHNJ) is a peer review and open access journal that publishes scientific work in the field of nursing (print ISSN: 2443-4019, e-ISSN: 2502-2083). The journal has been published since 2015 and was developed by the Research and Community Service Unit, STIKes Adi Husada. The ...