Profiling Culturally Responsive Care: Intercultural Communication and Empathy in the Nursing Workforce

Background/Objectives: Culturally responsive care requires both intercultural communication competence (ICC) and empathy; however, these constructs are often examined separately in nursing research. This study aimed to (i) describe nurses’ ICC and empathy levels, (ii) test the association between ICC and empathy, and (iii) examine group differences by selected demographic and professional variables. Methods: A quantitative, cross-sectional correlational design was conducted with 300 nurses recruited from state and private hospitals. ICC was measured using the Arasaratnam Intercultural Communication Competence Scale (cognitive, affective, and total), and empathy was assessed using the 18-item Jefferson Scale of Empathy (compassionate care, perspective taking, standing in the patient’s shoes, and total). Data were analyzed with descriptive statistics, Pearson correlations, independent-samples t-tests, and one-way ANOVAs with Scheffé post hoc tests (α = 0.05). Results: Both ICC and empathy were above the scale midpoint. Cognitive ICC (M = 4.71, SD = 1.42) exceeded affective ICC (M = 4.35, SD = 1.34), and total empathy was high (M = 4.50, SD = 0.90), with compassionate care as the highest subscale (M = 4.60, SD = 1.10). ICC total was moderately correlated with total empathy (r = 0.607, p state, p = 0.04). Conclusions: ICC and empathy were generally high and interrelated among nurses, with meaningful variation across workforce characteristics. Training should emphasize experiential and reflective approaches to strengthen affective ICC and perspective taking, while organizational strategies should foster intrinsic motivation and support professional development across career stages.