International Journal of Caring Sciences May-August 2023 Volume 16| Issue 2| Page 512
Editorial
Quiet Quitting: A Significant Threat for Healthcare Industry or an
Inevitable Reaction of the Healthcare Workers?
Petros Galanis, PhD
Assistant Professor, Clinical Epidemiology Laboratory, Faculty of Nursing, National and
Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece
Quiet quitting describes the phenomenon during the first year of the pandemic, 23.8%
where employees do not leave their jobs but of a sample of more than 9,000 physicians,
intentionally they are doing the bare minimum and 40% of a sample of 2,301 nurses planned
at their work. Further, they work performing to leave their jobs (Abbasi, 2022).
only their formal job description. In this
Economist Mark Boldger used for first time
context, workers set strict boundaries between
the term “quiet quitting” to describe workers’
their personal life and work life. Quiet
disassociation from jobs in China. However,
quitting seems to be a defense that workers
explosion of quiet-quitting phenomenon has
employ to avoid burnout and achieve a better
happened after a viral TikTok video on July
work-life balance. Quiet quitters refuse to
25, 2022. Afterwards, media and academic
sacrifice their well-being, and health to
scholars have paid growing attention to this
benefit their organizations. However, this
trend since its prevalence is increasing.
trend could also be a threat for organizations
since workers reduce their productivity and Although the phenomenon of “quiet quitting”
passion for work. A Gallop survey during is not new, scholars have not investigated it in
2022 with a randomly selected sample of depth as happens with other work-related
more than 15,000 workers found that 50% of variables, such as resignation, turnover
the participants could be describes as quiet intention, job satisfaction, job burnout, and
quitters (Harter, 2022). work overload. Several valid instruments
have been developed to measure these work-
Healthcare workers experience high levels of
related variables, e.g. the Maslach Burnout
job burnout, job dissatisfaction, work
Inventory, the Copenhagen Burnout
disengagement, and turnover intention.
Inventory, the Job Satisfaction Survey, etc.
Moreover, COVID-19 pandemic causes
However, there is only one valid instrument
tremendous changes in healthcare workers
measuring “quiet quitting”, and it is
physical and mental health, such as anxiety,
developed very recently, during 2023. The
depression, stress, insomnia, exhaustion, and
“Quiet Quitting” Scale (Galanis et al., 2023)
post-traumatic stress disorder. In this context,
allows now scholars to measure quiet-quitting
a great number of healthcare workers left their
phenomenon in a valid way.
jobs during the pandemic, following the
“great resignation” trend that occurred Thus, future studies should quantify the level
worldwide during 2021-2022. For example, of quiet quitting within healthcare workers,
www.internationaljournalofcaringsciences.org
International Journal of Caring Sciences May-August 2023 Volume 16| Issue 2| Page 513
and identify potential determinants of this organizational citizenship behaviors, and they
phenomenon. For instance, nurses experience do not perform to their maximum capacity.
higher levels of job burnout, job Therefore, scholars should conduct studies to
dissatisfaction, and turnover intention than a) measure the levels of quiet quitting within
other healthcare workers. Therefore, studies healthcare workers, b) understand the roots of
could investigate a possible relationship quiet-quitting phenomenon, c) explore the
between job title and quiet quitting. Several consequences, and d) suggest strategies to
other research questions could include the deal with quiet quitting.
potential impact of socio-demographic
References
characteristics of healthcare workers (e.g.,
gender, age, clinical experience, work sector, Abbasi, J. (2022). Pushed to their limits, 1 in 5
area of residence, healthcare settings, shift physicians intends to leave practice. JAMA,
work, etc.) on levels of quiet quitting. 327(15), 1435.
Additionally, psychological internal and https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2022.5074
external resources, such as resilience and Galanis, P., Katsiroumpa, A., Vraka, I., Siskou, O.,
social support, could also affect quiet quitting Konstantakopoulou, O., Moisoglou, I., Gallos,
within healthcare workers. P., & Kaitelidou, D. (2023). The “Quiet
Quitting” Scale: Development and initial
Policy makers, managers, and organizations
validation. OSF Preprints,
should better understand the quiet-quitting
https://doi.org/10.31219/osf.io/5tgpm
trend to meet healthcare workers’
Harter, J. (2022). Is quiet quitting real? GALLUP.
expectations and needs. This trend can be
Available at
detrimental to organizations since healthcare
https://www.gallup.com/workplace/398306/q
workers seem to be disengaged in
uiet-quitting-real.aspx
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