Aim:

Empathic competencies are not developed sufficiently during studies. Among the reasons for this, there are deficiencies and barriers which occur in the course of education. The purpose of research was to analyse internal barriers whose elimination could increase efficiency and quality of education and development of soft skills.

Material and methods:

A total of 396 students of nursing (N = 248) and midwifery (N = 148) participated in the study. The students completed the Empathy Quotient test (EQ-40) as well as a questionnaire, which consisted of a knowledge test and self-description questions on empathy.

Results:

As many as 44.5% of the students were not able to provide a correct definition of empathy. Only 49.5% of the students were able to identify signs of empathic behaviours correctly. 82.6% defined themselves as rather or definitely empathic people in spite of the fact, that in the EQ test 67.2% of the students received an average result and 11.2% a low one. 2.5% students are individuals with high-functioning autism. Most students admitted that they experience constant tiredness because they have too many responsibilities (72.2 %) and we observed a positive correlation between tiredness and empathy.

Conclusions:

The research reveals difficulties connected with the operationalisation of empathic behaviours. Students were much less empathic than according to their declarative self-assessment. The experience of stress and tiredness may impact the effectiveness of education when it comes to soft skills. Work in their profession at the initial stage may be a factor which increases empathy, commitment and care in patient care.