Purpose: The purpose of this study is to identify trends in research on cultural competency of nursing students and nurses in Korea and to provide suggestions for future studies. Methods: A literature search was conducted with 432 papers published between 1985 and 2016 from five electronic databases and other sources using such key words as ‘cultural competency’, ‘cultural nursing’, ‘multi-cultural competency’, ‘nursing students’, ‘nurses’, etc. Results: The research design of 86 nursing researches on the cultural competence of nurses and nursing students analyzed in this study was 90.7% in quantitative research, 9.3% in qualitative research, and 2.3% in mixed research. Cultural competence was the most measured concept. A total of 41 papers (47.7%) out of 86 papers were used to measure cultural competence. Ten different tools were used various instruments of cultural competency were used in 41 papers. In 11 experimental studies, new methods such as role playing, case study, four stage 3D puzzle model, newspaper reading, and writing reflection note were used other than traditional method of lecture. Conclusion: The overall findings of this study suggest that future research should include more well-designed experimental studies, qualitative studies and repeated studies to confirm the effects of findings from previous studies. Development of effective and highly diverse teaching methods is recommended to increase cultural competency. Supporting systems and funding are required to help activate research of nurses.