The healthcare community needs to be concerned about nursing turnover intention and the effect on the projected nursing shortage. The evaluation of nursing turnover intention and the association between turnover intention and various predictors needs to be determined. Job satisfaction and perceived stress have been identified to influence the intention to turnover. In addition, environmental factors (i.e. odor, noise, and light) may influence perceived stress and job satisfaction. This study tested theoretical relationships between the dependent variables of perceived stress, job satisfaction, and turnover intention and each of the independent variables of (a) odor, (b) noise, and (c) light.

The sample was comprised of 116 full – time registered nurses who worked on the medical — surgical units of a 588 bed Level 1 trauma center located in northern New Jersey. Hypothesis testing employed correlational and regression statistical techniques.

Statistically significant relationships were found between perceived stress and job satisfaction (r = .549, p = .000), job satisfaction and turnover intention (r = .740, p = 000), perceived stress and turnover intention (r = .336, p = .000), and perceived level of odor and job satisfaction ( r = -.272, p = .003). The relationships between perceived stress and job satisfaction, job satisfaction and turnover intention, and perceived stress and turnover intention were anticipated due to the strong theoretical and empirical evidence supporting these relationships.

Although a specific hypothesis was not proposed to combine all independent variables to explain the dependent variable of turnover intention, all independent variables were added to a regression model using backward regression. Backward regression was used because none of the independent variables were strong predictors of turnover intention. The environmental factors did not contribute significantly to the variance in turnover intention. Likewise, perceived stress offered little contribution. Finally, level of light and job satisfaction, together, explained 56% of the variance in turnover intention.