Essential for the help relation, empathy is the ability to understand, share, and perceive the subjective experience of other human beings.
Objective:
The objective in this non-experimental, exploratory, and descriptive research was to verify, observe, and document empathy in nursing professionals.
Research design:
Non-experimental, exploratory, and descriptive research. Participants and research context: the study was conducted at two large hospitals, one public and the other private, across all shifts. The sample included 159 individuals. A questionnaire was used to identify sociodemographic characteristics and the empathy inventory was applied.
Ethical considerations:
This study received approval from the Research Ethics Committee at the University of São Paulo at Ribeirão Preto College of Nursing, opinion 1348/2011, and authorization from the health institutions involved.
Findings:
The association tests demonstrated that professionals working in the night shift and in a work scale rotation scheme, older professionals, and professionals with longer professional experience are less empathetic. On the other hand, professionals working in the day shift and in a single shift are more empathetic. Other influential factors are the time on the job, education, and work shift.
Conclusion:
There is a lack of empathy studies in professional practice contexts, in human resource development programs, and throughout the professional education process.
BurnsDAuerbachA. Therapeutic empathy in cognitive-behavioral therapy: does it really make a difference? In: SalkoviskesPM (ed.) Frontiers of cognitive therapy. New York: The Guilford Press, 1996, pp. 135–163.
2.
FalconeEMOFerreiraMCLuzRCM. Construction of a Brazilian measure to evaluate empathy: the Empathy Inventory (EI). Aval Psicol2008; 7(3): 321–334.
3.
GolemanD. The groundbreaking book that redefines what it means to be smart. Emotional intelligence. Why it can matter more than IQ. New York: Bantam Books, 1997.
4.
MalpasPCorbettA. Modelling empathy in medical and nursing education. N Z Med J2012; 125(1352): 94–100.
5.
TschudinV. Counselling skills for nurses. London: Bailliére, 1987.
6.
FishSShellyJA. Cuidado espiritual do paciente [Spiritual patient care]. São Paulo, Brazil: UMHE, 1986.
7.
CarraroTERadünzV. Empathy in the therapeutic relationship: a caring skill. Cogitare Enferm1996; 1(2): 50–52(in Portuguese).
8.
LarsonBEYaoX. Clinical empathy as emotional labor in the patient-physician relationship: empathy, emotional labor and acting. JAMA2005; 293(9): 1100–1106.
9.
UlrichDLGlendonKJ. Interactive group learning: strategies for nurse educators. 2nd ed. New York: Springer, 2005.
10.
DavisMH. A multidimensional approach to individual differences in empathy. J Suppl Abstr Serv1980; 10: 85.
11.
FalconeE. A avaliação de um programa de treinamento da empatia com universitários. Revista Brasileira de Terapia Comportamental e Cognitiva1999; 1(1): 23–32.
12.
FalconeEMO. Assessment of a training program to develop empathy for university students. Rev Bras Ter Comport Cogn1999; 1(1): 23–32(in Portuguese).
13.
KollerSHCaminoCRibeiroJ. Adaptation and internal validation of two empathy scales for use in Brazil. Estud Psicol2001; 18(3): 45–53(in Portuguese).
14.
EscalasJESternBB. Sympathy and empathy: emotional responses to advertising dramas. JCR2003; 29(4): 566–578.
15.
SneilmanIGeddaKM. The value ground of nursing. Nurs Ethics2012; 19(6): 714–726.
16.
FinfgeldCD. Qualitative convergence of three nursing concepts: art of nursing, presence and caring. JAN2008; 63 (5): 527–534.
17.
JohnsonMHaigCYatesBN. Valuing of altruism and honesty in nursing students: a two decade replication study. JAN2006; 57(4): 366–374.
18.
TakakiMHSant’anaDMG. Empathy as the essence in the care rendered to the client by the nursing team in a basic health unit. Cogitare Enferm. 2004; 9(1): 79–83(in Portuguese).
19.
MercerSWReynoldsWJ. Empathy and quality of care. Br J Gen Pract2002; 52Suppl: S9–12.
20.
MottaDCFalconeEMOClarkC. Positive parenting practices bring benefits to the development of empathy in childrens. Psicol Estud2006; 11(3): 523–532(in Portuguese).
21.
PeplauHE. Relaciones interpersonales en enfermería: um marco de referência conceptual para la enfermería psicodinâmica[Interpersonal relations in nursing: a conceptual reference framework for psychodynamic nursing]. Barcelona: Masson/Salvet, 1990.
22.
ReynoldsWJ. The measurement and development of empathy in nursing. Burlington: Ashgate, 2000.
23.
StarcevicVPiontekC. Empathic understanding revisited: conceptualization, controversies, and limitations. American Journal of Psychotherapy1997; 51: 317–328.
24.
ZinW. The empathic physician. Arch Intern Med1994; 154: 306–312.
25.
BruneroSLamontSCoastesM. A review of empathy education in nursing. Nursing Inquiry2010; 17
(1): 65–74.
26.
SantoLDPohlSSaianiLBattistelliA. Empathy in the emotional interactions with patients. Is it positive for nurses too?Journal ofNursing Education and Practice2014; 4
(2): 74–81.
27.
HalpernJ. What is clinical empathy?JGIM2003; 18: 670–674.
28.
PinhoVDFernandesCS and Falcone EMO. Influence of age and schooling degree on adult’ empathic experience. Estud Pesqui Psicol2011; 11(2): 456–471(in Portuguese).
29.
FayersPMMachimD.Quality of life: assessment, analysis and interpretation of patient-reported outcomes. Hoboken: Wiley, 2000.
30.
SpinradtTEisenbergNCumberlandA. Relation of emotion-related regulation to children’s social competence: a longitudinal study. Emotion2006; 6
(3): 498–510.
31.
CecconelloAMKollerSH. Competência social e empatia: um estudo sobre resiliência com crianças em situação de pobreza [Social competence and empathy: a study on resiliency involving children in poverty]. Estud Psicol2000; 5(1): 71–93.
32.
BrownTWilliamsBBoyleM. Levels of empathy in undergraduate occupational therapy students. Occup Ther Int2010; 17
(3): 135–141.
33.
MartinsCKobayashiRMAyoubAC. Perfil do enfermeiro e necessidades de desenvolvimento de competência profissional [Profile of the nurse and professional competence development needs]. Texto Contexto Enferm2006; 15
(3): 472–478.
34.
SchimidtDRCDantasRASMarzialeMHP. Occupational stress among nursing staff in surgical settings. Texto Contexto Enferm2009; 18(2): 330–337(in Portuguese).
LausAMAnselmiML. Characterization of inpatients at the medical and surgical units of the University of São Paulo at Ribeirão Preto Medical School Hospital, according to the level of dependence on nursing care. Rev Latino Am Enfermagem2004; 12
(4): 643–9.
37.
MartinsEP. Empatia e os padrões de vinculação em estudantes universitários: um estudo comparativo[Empathy and bonding patterns in college students: a comparative study]. Master’s thesis, Universidade de Trás os Montes e Alto Douro, Portugal, 2011.
38.
ÇınarNCevahirRŞahinS. Evaluation of the empathic skills of nursing students with respect to the classes they are attending. Rev Eletr Enf 2007; 9(3): 588–595.
39.
VanlaereLCouckeTGastmansC. Experiential learning of empathy in a care-ethics lab. Nurs Ethics2010; 17 (3): 325–336.
40.
PittaA. Hospital: dor e morte como ofício [Hospital: pain and death as a craft]. São Paulo: Hucitec, 1991.
41.
EliasMANavarroVR. The relation between work, health and living conditions: negativity and positivity in nursing work at a teaching hospital. Rev Latino-Am Enfermagem2006; 14
(4): 517–525.
42.
MarzialeMHP. Nurses point out inadequate work conditions resulting in the deterioration of nursing care quality. Rev Latino Am Enfermagem2001; 9
(3): 1.
43.
MarzialeMHPRozestratenRJA. Shift schedule: mental fatigue in nursing. Rev Latino Am Enfermagem1995; 3
(1): 59–78.
44.
DuranECMCoccoMIM. Capacidade para o trabalho entre trabalhadores de enfermagem do pronto-socorro de um hospital universitário [Capacity for work among nursing workers from the emergency care service of a university hospital]. Rev Lat Am Enfermagem2004; 12
(1): 43–49.
BrownJGTrinkoffAM. Is it time to pull the plug on 12 hours shifts?JONA2010; 40
(9): 357–359.
47.
AikenLHCimiottiJPSloaneDM. Effects of nurse staffing and nurse education on patient deaths in hospitals with different nurse work environments. JONA2011; 49
(12): 1047–1053.
48.
PadilhaKG. Dês-cuidar: as representações sociais dos enfermeiros de UTI sobre as iatrogenias de enfermagem [Un-caring: the social representations of ICU nurses about nursing iatrogenies]. Doctoral dissertation. São Paulo (SP): Escola de Enfermagem da USP; 1994(in Portuguese).
49.
LautertL. The professional fatigue: empirical study with hospital nurses. Rev Gaúcha Enferm1997; 18(2): 133–44(in Portuguese).
50.
GuirardelloEB. Factors in the critical care and medical surgical environments that increase requirements for directed attention. Master’s thesis. Madison (WI): School of Nursing; 1993.
51.
RoscaniANCPGuirardelloEB. Attention demands in the work place and the capacity to direct attention of nurses. Rev Latino Am Enfermagem2007; 15
(1): 27–33.
52.
ManettiMLMarzialeMHP. Fatores associados à depressão relacionada ao trabalho de enfermagem [Depression-associated factors related to nursing work]. Estud Psicol2007; 12
(1): 79–85.
