CONTEXT In light of the call for humanistic caring in the contemporary health care system globally and in China, the issue of improving the caring skills that are essential to student success, high-quality nursing practice and positive patient outcomes is at the forefront of nursing education. OBJECTIVES The aim of this mixed-methods quantitative and qualitative study was to investigate baccalaureate nursing students' caring ability in the context of China and to explore the role of clinical practice learning in the development of students' caring skills. METHODS A two-phase, descriptive study utilising a mixed methodology consisting of a caring ability survey and focus group interviews was conducted. In the quantitative phase, 598 baccalaureate nursing students at two colleges in Yunnan Province in southwest China were surveyed using the Caring Ability Inventory (CAI). In the qualitative phase, 16 of the students who had participated in the quantitative phase were interviewed. RESULTS Students obtained lower scores on the CAI than have been reported elsewhere by other researchers. In addition, students in the clinical stage of training scored lower than students in the pre-clinical stage. Three themes concerning facilitation by and three themes concerning the obstructive effects of clinical practice learning in the development of caring ability were identified. Themes pertaining to facilitation were: (i) promoting a sense of professional responsibility and ethics; (ii) providing an arena in which to practise caring, and (iii) learning from positive role models. Themes pertaining to obstruction were: (i) a critical practice learning environment; (ii) encountering inappropriate clinical teachers, and (iii) experiencing shock at the contrast between an idealised and the real environment. CONCLUSIONS The key to developing students' ability to care lies in highlighting caring across the entire health care system. By diminishing exposure to negative role models, and adopting appropriate pedagogical ideas about education in caring, such as truth telling and helping students to think in a critical manner, educators can help students to improve their caring ability.