Purpose The purpose of this paper is to test the mediating role of autonomy in the effect of a pro-innovation organizational climate and supervisor supportiveness (SS) on the innovative behavior (IB) of nurses. Design/methodology/approach The sample of this cross-sectional, correlational study consisted of 332 nurses, who were selected, on the basis of the convenience sampling method, from among the nurses working at two public university hospitals in Istanbul. The data of the study were collected between February and May of 2015. Descriptive analysis and linear regression analysis were used for data analysis, and the bootstrapping method was applied to test the significance of the mediating role. Findings The model used for examining the mediating role of autonomy was found to be statistically significant, as it explained 36 percent of the variance of IB. When the significance of the mediating role was tested, its effect on both innovation climate and SS was observed to be significant. Originality/value The obtained results indicated that a pro-innovation organizational climate and SS functioned as premises for autonomy. In turn, the rise in autonomy level that served to innovative climate and SS increased the IB of the nurses through boosting their autonomy level. From these results, it can be argued that nurses with a high level of professional autonomy can create innovative outputs and provide added value through the IB they practice in providing patient care and general health services.

Accessible healthcare services require a sufficient number of well-educated and well-motivated nurses who can provide quality and safe healthcare services (Simoens, Villeneuve, & Hurst, 2005). The global shortage of nurses reveals the importance of jobs that meet employees' career development needs and provide an opportunity for progress (Burke, Johnson, Sites, & Barnsteiner, 2017). Spurk, Keller, and have reported that employees with successful careers have a higher sense of welfare and job satisfaction (JS) and a lower level of intent to leave (ITL); therefore, determining the predictors of career

PurposeThis study aims to determine the effect of servant leadership on nurses' innovative behavior and job performance and to examine the moderator role of servant leadership in the relationship between nurses' innovative behavior and job performance based on the self-determination theory and social exchange theory.Design/methodology/approachThis correlational study included 885 nurses selected from three public hospitals in Istanbul using the convenience sampling method. Data were analyzed using descriptive tests, correlation analysis and linear and hierarchical regression analyses.FindingsThe nurse managers' servant leadership behaviors were statistically significantly related with the nurses' innovative behaviors and job performances: servant leadership behaviors of the nurse managers increased the nurses' innovative behaviors and job performances and found to partially play a role of a moderator in the effect of nurses' innovative behaviors on job performance.Practical implicationsThis study shows that positive nurse outcomes will be achieved when nurse managers show an ethical, humanistic, empathic, mutual benefit and service-oriented approach and adopt a servant leadership approach as appropriate to the nature of nursing.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the literature by revealing the effect of nurse managers' servant leadership on nurses' innovative behavior and job performance, as well as the partial moderator role of servant leadership, which has not been studied before as a part of the relationship between innovative behavior and job performance.