Does patient care depend on patients’ health behaviors? A study investigating the impact of empathy among future healthcare professionals on their willingness to help

Nasello, Julian; Triffaux, Jean-Marc

doi:10.5964/ejop.15323

Article (Scientific journals)

Does patient care depend on patients’ health behaviors? A study investigating the impact of empathy among future healthcare professionals on their willingness to help

Nasello, Julian; Triffaux, Jean-Marc

2025 • In Europe's Journal of Psychology, 21 (4), p. 392-403

Peer Reviewed verified by ORBi

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https://hdl.handle.net/2268/338007

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10.5964/ejop.15323

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Keywords :

willingness to help, future healthcare professionals, health behaviors

Abstract :

[en] Objectives This study examines the impact of patients’ healthy and unhealthy behaviors on future healthcare professionals’ willingness to help. Additionally, it also investigates how empathy among future healthcare professionals shapes their willingness to help. Methods Three hundred future healthcare professionals completed sociodemographic and empathy questionnaires and evaluated 12 clinical vignettes assessing their willingness to help. The vignettes depicted patients engaging in either healthy or unhealthy behaviors. Results Participants reported a greater willingness to help patients displaying healthy behaviors compared to those exhibiting unhealthy behaviors (small effect). A moderate positive association was also observed between empathy and willingness to help. Notably, while affective empathy remained a significant correlate, cognitive empathy showed a stronger association with willingness to help in scenarios involving unhealthy behaviors. Although both gender and grade significantly predicted empathy (with moderate and small effects, respectively), neither variable significantly predicted willingness to help. Conclusions The findings demonstrate that patients’ health behaviors influence willingness to help and highlight the role of empathy in shaping these intentions. The study therefore supports integrating targeted empathy-focused training into academic curricula to strengthen empathic and related interpersonal skills among future healthcare professionals.

Disciplines :

Psychiatry

Author, co-author :

Nasello, Julian ; Université de Liège - ULiège > Unités de recherche interfacultaires > Research Unit for a life-Course perspective on Health and Education (RUCHE)

Triffaux, Jean-Marc ; Université de Liège - ULiège > Département des sciences cliniques > Psychologie médicale

Language :

English

Title :

Does patient care depend on patients’ health behaviors? A study investigating the impact of empathy among future healthcare professionals on their willingness to help

Publication date :

28 November 2025

Journal title :

Europe's Journal of Psychology

eISSN :

1841-0413

Publisher :

Leibniz Institute for Psychology (ZPID)

Volume :

Issue :

Pages :

392-403

Peer reviewed :

Peer Reviewed verified by ORBi

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https://ejop.psychopen.eu/index.php/ejop/article/download/15323/15323.pdf

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since 28 November 2025

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