Cultural intelligence and its relation with professional competency in nurses

Background & Aim: Every pioneer healthcare-related organization should consider investment on enhancing the competency of the nurses. Since nurses would encounter patients from different cultures, cultural intelligence is considered an important capability for nurses. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relation between cultural intelligence and professional competency. Methods & Materials: This correlational study was conducted on 274 nurses who were selected using multistage random sampling. The sample size was calculated using the Cochran’s formula. Data gathering tools were Ang’s cultural intelligence questionnaire and Cowan’s professional competency questionnaire. The validity of the tools was evaluated using content and face validity and their internal consistency was measured using Cronbach’s α (0.88 for cultural intelligence and 0.89 for professional competency). Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation test and multiple regressions. Results: Results showed that the mean score of professional competency among the nurses was 226 ± 17.3 and of cultural intelligence was 88.2 ± 11.32. The dimensions of metacognitive (r = 0.568, p < 0.001), motivational (r = 539, p = 0.007) and behavioral (r = 0.266, p = 0.027) of the cultural intelligence had a positive meaningful relation with professional competency of the nurses. Also, the dimension of metacognitive with the value of 0.423 had the highest predictive power for professional competency. Conclusion: Considering the relation between cultural intelligence and professional competency of the nurses and the predictive power of some of its dimensions in estimating the professional competency of the nurses, it seems that the concept of cultural intelligence could be attended for improving and enhancing the quality of provided cares.