Aim: The study was conducted to determine the leadership approaches of nurse managers, and to compare their approaches as to hospitals.
Method: The population of study included total 614 nurses, and the sample included 369 nurses working a university, state and private hospital in Istanbul. Data have been gathered with a questionnaire composed of 10 questions about demographics and satisfaction of nurses from their managers, and Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ) between July 2006 and March 2007, and tested with percentage, average, correlation, Cronbach Alpha, t test, Mann-Whitney U, Kruskal Wallis tests and Confi rmatory Factor Analysis.
Results: Nurses satisfi ed from their managers (68%) and their managers’ attitude and behaviours (51%) as general, and it was determined that the nurses who satisfi ed from their managers regarded as transformational and transactional leader (p= 0.000). According to the scale, the result regarding nurses who consented their managers as transformational leader (2.65) supported these results. Nurses in private hospitals accepted their managers more transformational (χ2K-W= 23.06; p= 0.000), but also they stated that approaches of transactional leadership were acted.
Conclusion: It has been detected that leadership behaviors have a positive impact on nurses’ satisfaction, all of the nurses containing especially nurses in private hospitals have perceived their managers as tranformational leader.