Empathy is of most importance in the medical field. The ability to comprehend and connect with the emotional state of another person is essential for establishing a successful interaction between patients and health care professionals.

The aim of this study was to assess empathic response in general nursing (GN) students.

The study was conducted between 2015–2016 on 75, sixth-year Romanian GN undergraduates from the Timisoara “Victor Babes” university of medicine and pharmacy. To evaluate the level of empathy, we used the empathy quotient (EQ), a 60-item self-report inventory with 40 questions empathy-related and 20 filler questions.

We included in this study 12 (16%) males and 63 (84%) females, with a mean age of 23.48 years (SD = 2.17). Female GN students had significantly higher EQ mean scores than the general female population. Compared to female students, males obtained significantly lower EQ mean scores. There were no significant differences between male and female students regarding age distribution.

Female GN students showed greater empathy than their male colleagues, as well as than the general female population. These results support the theory on women's understanding of others mental states, vital to the provision of a worthy nursing care.

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.