# The impact of core self-evaluation on social anxiety among male nursing interns: the mediating role of self-acceptance

## TL;DR

This study shows that self-acceptance helps reduce social anxiety in male nursing interns who have high self-evaluation.

## Contribution

The novel finding is that self-acceptance partially mediates the link between core self-evaluation and social anxiety in male nursing interns.

## Key findings

- Core self-evaluation is strongly negatively linked to social anxiety (r = -0.559).
- Self-acceptance partially mediates the relationship between core self-evaluation and social anxiety (21.19% mediating effect).

## Abstract

This study aimed to examine the mediating role of self-acceptance in the relationship between core self-evaluation and social anxiety. Specifically, it aimed to investigate the effects of core self-evaluation and the impact of self-acceptance on social anxiety among male nursing students during their internship.

A purposive sampling method was used to select a sample of 149 male nursing students from 8 tertiary hospitals in Henan Province. A questionnaire survey was conducted using the Core Self-Esteem Scale and the Social Anxiety Scale. The Scale of Self-Acceptance was also administered, and the data were statistically analyzed using SPSS software with the Process plug-in.

The results indicated a significant positive correlation between core self-evaluation and self-acceptance (r = 0.486), as well as a significant negative correlation between core self-evaluation and social anxiety (r = −0.559). Additionally, a significant negative correlation was observed between self-acceptance and social anxiety (r = −0.457). The direct effect of core self-evaluation on social anxiety was −0.584, while the indirect effect via self-acceptance was −0.157, resulting in a total effect size of −0.741 and a mediating effect size of 21.19%.

The findings indicate that self-acceptance partially mediates the relationship between core self-evaluation and social anxiety among male nursing students during their internship.