Brain Drain Intention: The Role of Improved Standard of Living on Quality of Work-Life among Nigerian Medical Students in Diaspora

Abstract

This study investigates the determinants of brain drain intention among Nigerian medical students in the diaspora, focusing on how improved standards of living mediate the relationship between socio-economic push factors and the perceived quality of work-life. Using a cross-sectional survey design, data were collected from 428 medical students enrolled in 18 universities across six countries, and analysed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM). The study examined the influence of high unemployment, poor infrastructure, insecurity; poor pay, and mass poverty on quality of work-life, with improved living standards serving as a mediating variable. The results show that all five factors significantly and negatively affect the perceived quality of work-life, confirming their role as key drivers of brain drain intentions. Moreover, improved living standards fully mediated these relationships, indicating that favourable socio-economic and environmental conditions abroad offset the negative effects of poor domestic conditions and strengthen students’ intentions to remain overseas after graduation. These findings suggest that the decision of Nigerian medical students to stay abroad is shaped not only by professional and economic dissatisfaction but also by comparative perceptions of well-being and life quality. The study concludes that tackling brain drain requires integrated national retention strategies that simultaneously enhance professional welfare, living standards, and work-life quality within Nigeria.