Table 2 Factor coefficient, mean (SD) for PCA with corrected item-total correlation and Cronbach’s alpha values JSE-HPS (n = 439)

Attentiveness to patients’ personal experiences does not influence treatment outcomes. (-) Q8

-0.078

1.96 (1.331)

0.596

Healthcare providers’ understanding of their patients’ feelings and the feelings of their patients’ families do not influence treatment outcomes. (-) Q1

-0.050

2.13 (1.705)

0.501

Patients’ illnesses can be cured only by targeted treatment; therefore, healthcare providers’ emotional ties with their patients do not have a significant influence in treatment outcomes. (-) Q11

0.114

2.03 (1.315)

0.573

Attention to patients’ emotions is not important in-patient interview. (-) Q7

0.086

1.50 (1.016)

0.529

Asking patients about what is happening in their personal lives is not helpful in understanding their physical complaints. (-) Q12

0.143

1.81 (1.097)

0.558

I believe that emotion has no place in the treatment of medical illness. (-) Q14

-0.038

1.74 (1.135)

0.518

Healthcare providers should not allow themselves to be influenced by strong personal bonds between their patients and their family members. (-) Q18

0.160

3.73 (1.663)

0.291

I do not enjoy reading non-medical literature or the arts. (-) Q19

0.174

1.72 (1.380)

0.267

Empathy is a therapeutic skill without which a healthcare provider’s success is limited. (+) Q15

0.024

5.84 (1.250)

0.528

I believe that empathy is an important factor in patients’ treatment. (+) Q20

0.107

6.26 (0.990)

0.581

Healthcare providers should try to think like their patients in order to render better care. (+) Q17

0.005

5.12 (1.678)

0.394

Healthcare providers should try to stand in their patients’ shoes when providing care to them. (+) Q9

0.093

5.61 (1.522)

0.410

Healthcare providers’ understanding of the emotional status of their patients, as well as that of their families is one important component of the healthcare provider-patient relationship. (+) Q16

-0.015

6.13 (1.032)

0.514

Patients value a healthcare provider’s understanding of their feelings which is therapeutic in its own right. (+) Q10

0.130

5.94 (1.063)

0.508

Understanding body language is as important as verbal communication in healthcare provider–patient relationships. (+) Q4

0.114

5.83 (1.306)

0.368

Patients feel better when their healthcare providers understand their feelings. (+) Q2

-0.085

6.56 (0.750)

0.461

 A health care provider’s sense of humour contributes to a better clinical outcome. (+) Q5

-0.005

5.60 (1.316)

0.363

Healthcare providers should try to understand what is going on in their patients’ minds by paying attention to their non-verbal cues and body language. (+) Q13

0.104

5.80 (1.385)

0.372

Because people are different, it is difficult to see things from patients’ perspectives. (-) Q6

0.866

4.60 (1.843)

0.483

It is difficult for a healthcare provider to view things from patients’ perspectives. (-) Q3

0.796

2.97 (1.529)

0.483

Eigenvalue

1.4

Cronbach’s alpha coefficient

0.64

Variance (%)

7