Abstract:Objective To explore the relationship between psychological capital and moral courage and coping styles among medical personnel in the emergency department, and to analyze the moderating effect of coping styles.Methods A total of 345 emergency department medical personnel from 6 Grade A tertiary hospitals in Changsha, Hunan Province were selected by random sampling. Psychological capital scale, moral courage scale and Simplified Coping Style Questionnaire were used for the study.Results There were differences in scores of moral courage among emergency department medical personnel with different age, years of working and titles (P < 0.05). The total scores of psychological capital, moral courage, positive coping style, and negative coping style were 85.33 ± 17.18, 76.01 ± 13.93, 25.04 ± 6.13, and 12.81 ± 4.61, respectively. Pearson correlation analysis revealed that the total scores of moral courage were positively correlated with those of psychological capital and positive coping style (r = 0.677 and 0.492, both P < 0.05). The total scores of moral courage were negatively correlated with those of negative coping style (r = 0.135, P < 0.05). The interaction term of negative coping style and psychological capital was significant and negative (P < 0.05). When the scores of positive coping style were high (higher than one standard deviation above the mean, high-score group), psychological capital was positively correlated with moral courage (P < 0.05). When the scores of positive coping style were low (lower than one standard deviation below the mean, low-score group), the positive correlation between psychological capital and moral courage remained significant, but the strength of the correlation decreased substantially (P < 0.05). Besides, the simple slope of positive coping style in the high-score group was greater than that in the low-score group (P < 0.05). When the negative coping style was in the low-score group, psychological capital was positively correlated with moral courage (P < 0.05). When the negative coping style was in the high-score group, the positive correlation between psychological capital and moral courage remained significant, but the effect was attenuated (P < 0.05). The simple slope of negative coping style in the low-score group was greater than that in the high-score group (P < 0.05).Conclusions Psychological capital positively affects the moral courage of medical personnel in the emergency department, in which coping style plays a moderating role. Hospital administrators need to strengthen psychological counseling and intervention for medical personnel in the emergency department, enhance their coping abilities, and foster moral courage.