As the issue of nurses’ turnover rate becomes increasingly prominent, work alienation has gradually become a research focus.

The aim of this study was to understand the current situation of work alienation among emergency department nurses and explore the mediating effect of work-related stress in the relationship between psychological capital and work alienation.

A cross-sectional investigation was conducted in four cities from June to August 2022, in China. A total of 364 nurses in emergency departments were included in this study. Data were collected using work-related stress questionnaires, psychological capital questionnaires, and work alienation questionnaires. Structural equation modeling implemented was used to analyze the relationship among psychological capital, work alienation, and work-related stress.

Nurses in the emergency department have some extent of work alienation. Psychological capital had a direct and negative effect on work alienation, and it also had a significant indirect effect on work alienation through work-related stress, which means that work-related stress to a certain extent mediated the effect of psychological capital on work alienation, the mediating effect accounted for 39.11% of the total effect.

Work-related stress to a certain extent mediated the effect of psychological capital on work alienation among emergency department nurses. The result provides new insights for nursing managers to reduce their level of work alienation among nurses in emergency department.