MEDIATING ROLE OF EMOTIONAL EXHAUSTION AND SUBJECTIVE WELL-BEING IN THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PERCEIVED SOCIAL SUPPORT AND JOB PERFORMANCE OF NURSES DURING THE CORONA PANDEMIC

Background and Objectives: Nurses face stressful situations in life, including personal life challenges, the nature of work that requires long standing and concentration, commitment to patient care, and dealing with patients. The study aimed to investigate the mediating role of emotional fatigue and mental well-being in the relationship between perceived social support and job performance in nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: It was a descriptive-correlational research with structural equation modeling. The statistical population was all the nurses of public hospitals in the city of Kerman in 2021, 321 of whom were selected through convenience sampling method. Results: There is a positive and significant relationship between perceived social support and nurses' emotional fatigue during the COVID-19 pandemic. There are positive and significant relationships between nurses' perceived social support and mental well-being, emotional fatigue and job performance, and mental well-being and job performance. The results confirmed the mediating role of emotional fatigue and mental well-being in the relationship between perceived social support and job performance in nurses. Conclusion: Since working conditions affects nurse's job performance, improving internal resources, such as mental well-being, through motivational interventions and giving social support increases their productivity and reduces their emotional fatigue, which plays a crucial role in health crises.