Relationship between perceived emotional intelligence, personality and empathic behavior in nursing students

The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between perceived emotional intelligence (PEI), personality traits and empathy in nursing students. In addition, the contribution of emotional intelligence and personality as predicting factors in the dimensions of empathy was analyzed. In order to carry out the experiment, a sample of 135 nursing student of the University of Jaen (Spain) was selected to answer the TMMS-24, NEO-FFI and the IRI questionnaires. The results indicate a positive relationship between the dimensions of the IEP, characteristics of personality and empathy. In addition, the emotional attention and repair are like good a predicting one of the empathy implication. In sum, the results obtained show the importance of handling one's emotions in relation to empathy for a career in nursing. In consequence programs for training emotional intelligence would prove useful as part of the curriculum of nursing students.