The Relationship Between Nurses' Intercultural Communication Apprehension, Xenophobia Levels and Caring Behaviours: A Descriptive and Relational Research.

INTRODUCTION

With increasing immigration, the likelihood that nurses will provide care to individuals from diverse cultures has increased. To deliver ethically appropriate care, nurses must consider diverse cultural characteristics. Therefore, it is important to assess nurses' attitudes toward individuals from diverse cultures in relation to the quality of care provided.

AIM: The study aimed to investigate the relationships among nurses' intercultural communication apprehension, levels of xenophobia and caring behaviours.

METHODOLOGY: This is a descriptive, correlational and cross-sectional study. Data were collected from nurses using the Personal Information Form, the Caring Behaviors Inventory-24, the Intercultural Communication Apprehension Scale and the Xenophobia Scale. Descriptive statistics, exploratory analyses and linear regression analysis were applied.

ETHICAL ISSUES AND APPROVAL: Ethical approval and informed consent were obtained from all participants.

RESULTS

Participants' levels of intercultural communication apprehension and xenophobia were moderate, and their perceptions of care behaviours were high. It was determined that age, gender, education, knowing a second language, having experience abroad, having friends from different cultures, Xenophobia Scale scores and Caring Behaviours Inventory-24 scores explained 38.1% of the change in Intercultural Communication Apprehension Scale scores.

STUDY LIMITATIONS: Conducting the study at a single centre limits its generalizability.

CONCLUSIONS

Because interacting with different cultures can reduce intercultural communication apprehension and xenophobia, practices that facilitate nurses' interaction with people from other cultures should be developed.