The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among psychological capital, meaning in life, grit, and burnout among female care workers and to investigate the sequential double mediating effects of meaning in life and grit in the relationship between psychological capital and burnout. A survey was conducted with 307 female care workers employed at eight long-term care facilities (nursing homes) located in Chungcheongnam-do, South Korea. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS Statistics 31.0 and PROCESS Macro Model 6, including Pearson’s correlation analysis, regression analysis, mediation analysis, and competitive model analysis. The results indicated that psychological capital was positively correlated with meaning in life and grit, and negatively correlated with burnout. Meaning in life and grit were also negatively correlated with burnout. In addition, both meaning in life and grit showed partial mediating effects in the relationship between psychological capital and burnout. The sequential double mediation analysis indicated that both mediation pathways were significant: one in which psychological capital influenced burnout through meaning in life followed by grit, and another in which psychological capital influenced burnout through grit followed by meaning in life. However, the indirect effect was relatively stronger when meaning in life was specified as the preceding mediator. These findings suggest that psychological capital alleviates burnout through a sequential mechanism involving meaning in life and grit, and provide foundational evidence for developing psychological intervention programs and strategies aimed at preventing burnout among female care workers.
