The association between dispositional mindfulness and empathy among undergraduate nursing students: A multicenter cross-sectional study

Abstract

The aim of this study was to explore the role of gender, age, and academic year in shaping dispositional mindfulness (DM) and the association between DM facets and empathy dimensions in a sample of undergraduate nursing students. In a multicenter cross-sectional study design, the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ), the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI), and socio-demographic questions were administrated to a convenience sample of Italian nursing students. 622 nursing students (82.2% female) participated in the study (response rate = 86.15%). Females had higher levels of Acting with Awareness (p < .001, d = .54) and lower levels of Non-reacting (p < .001, d = .52) facets of DM than males. Older students displayed higher scores on the Observing (r = .112, p = .005) and on the Non-reacting (r = .187, p < .001) FFMQ subscales than younger ones. No statistically significant differences in DM levels between the three academic years were found (ps > .202). After controlling for socio-demographic factors, DM facets were generally positively related to Perspective Taking (βs from .131 to .208, ps < .007) and Empathic Concern (βs from −.156 to .189, ps < .001), whereas negatively related to Personal Distress (βs from −.141 to −.261, ps < .001). Nursing students with higher levels of DM were more able to consider others’ cognitive perspective and to feel compassion, and were less emotionally distressed when facing tense interpersonal situations. Tailored mindfulness interventions might be useful to foster functional empathy within nursing undergraduate programs.

Mediating effects of emotion regulation between socio-cognitive mindfulness and empathy in nurses: a cross-sectional study

“…In fact, some previous studies reported a positive correlation between meditative mindfulness and socio-cognitive mindfulness [13,28,68]. Positive correlations between meditative mindfulness and empathy have also been found in previous studies [69,70], including those in the nursing field [14,18,21,25,26].…”

“…For nursing students, mindfulness intervention was effective in alleviating stress [21][22][23], depression [22,23], and anxiety [21][22][23]. In addition, a higher level of mindfulness was linked to enhancing nursing students' sense of well-being [21], a reappraisal emotion strategy [24], empathy [21,25,26], self-esteem [27], and academic outcomes [28].…”

“…To date, the relationships between mindfulness, emotion regulation, and empathy in nursing have been examined in the meditative mindfulness construct [14,18,21,[24][25][26]. However, research on socio-cognitive mindfulness and its relationships with emotion regulation and empathy is deficient in the nursing field.…”

Muslim Students' Dispositional Mindfulness and Mental Well-Being: The Mediating Role of Core Self-Evaluation

“…Thus, dispositional mindfulness would predict CSE, which in turn would predict increased levels of well-being. Furthermore, past research studies have found significant differences in mindfulness with respect to gender (Ardenghi et al, 2022). Males have been found to score higher on dispositional mindfulness than females (Alispahic & Hasanbegovic-Anic, 2017).…”

The Mediating Effect of Empathy between Mindfulness and Self-Leadership in Female University Students: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…Meanwhile, the literature has found that mindfulness was positively correlated with empathy among university students [ 23 , 24 , 25 ]. Considerable studies have also supported that mindfulness-based interventions improved university students’ empathy [ 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 ].…”