Emotional intelligence and psychological resilience to negative life events

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Abstract

This study investigated the relative importance of six emotional intelligence (EI) dimensions in the prediction of psychological resilience to multiple negative life events. The strength of relations between life events and distress varied markedly across three latent classes of participants, reflecting vulnerable, average and resilient profiles. Discriminant function analysis indicated that class membership varied as a function of four EI dimensions, with higher scores predicting membership to the resilient class. Across the 414 participants, Emotional Self-Awareness, Emotional Expression, Emotional Self-Control and particularly Emotional Self-Management appeared central to psychological resilience in the aftermath of multiple negative life events.

Introduction

Major life events, including the death of loved-ones, serious illness, or job loss, precede almost all types of mood disorder (Stueve, Dohrenwend, & Skodol, 1998). Emotional intelligence (EI), or the ability to intelligently utilise emotional information, may temper their impact on mental health (Ciarrochi, Forgas, & Mayer, 2001). How EI might buffer the effect of aversive events is the focus of the present study.

Stressful or negative life events have typically been construed as change events that precipitate movement from one set of living conditions to another. The life transitions resulting from such events pose significant adaptational challenges that can strain people’s ability to cope to the point of clinical distress, manifest for instance in symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress. Moreover, the experience of multiple such events can compound distress (Monroe & Simons, 1991). Indeed, one stressful event can impede coping efficacy for additional events, increasing vulnerability to and even the likelihood of further negative events (Kessler, 1997). As well, transitional recovery periods are typically quite long. Research has shown that significant life events often retain their impact over a two-year period (Monroe & Simons, 1991).

While such events are potentially traumatic, people are impacted differently. Some people experience long-term trauma. Others suffer significant short-term impairment. Then there are those who experience only mild, transient perturbations. Such persons are considered resilient (Bonanno, 2004).

Emotional intelligence may well be directly connected to resilience, such that emotionally intelligent behaviour in stressful circumstances is adaptive. Salovey, Bedell, Detweiler, and Mayer (1999) theorize that persons with higher EI cope better with the emotional demands of stressful encounters because they are able to “accurately perceive and appraise their emotions, know how and when to express their feelings, and can effectively regulate their mood states” (p. 161). EI is thus postulated to buffer the effects of aversive events through emotional self-awareness, expression and management.

Researchers investigating these and other health-related links have frequently distinguished between ability-based EI models in which EI is assessed via intelligence-like tests (e.g. the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test; Mayer, Salovey, & Caruso, 2000) and trait models in which EI is measured via self-reported emotion-related dispositions, self-perceptions or motivations (e.g. the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire; Petrides, Pita, & Kokinnaki, 2007). While ability tests purport to measure “maximal performance”, trait-models measure “typical performance” (Petrides et al., 2007). In the current study we focus on typical performance rather than episodes of peak EI performance in coping with event-related distress. Moreover we take the view that emotional intelligence is antecedent to resilience (Matthews, Zeidner, & Roberts, 2002) rather than encompassing resilience (Bar-On, 1997), such that EI functions through its composite dimensions to facilitate resilience.

The evidence linking self-reported EI to health is considerable. A meta analysis of 80 studies involving 20,000 participants found the average strength of relationship between EI and mental health to be around r = .36, r = .33 for psychosomatic health, and r = .27 for physical health criteria (Martins, Ramalho, & Morin, 2010). Other studies have shown that self-reported EI can moderate the psychological impact of experimentally induced-stress (Mikolajczak, Petrides, Coumans, & Luminet, 2009), academic exam stress (Mikolajczak, Luminet, & Mendil, 2006) and emotional labour in the workplace (Mikolajczak, Mendil, & Luminet, 2007). Two studies have also examined the buffering hypothesis in the context of multiple stressful life events (Ciarrochi et al., 2002, Day et al., 2005), but despite positive associations between EI and mental health, neither study found substantive evidence of buffering.

In the current study, we examine the relative value of six EI dimensions that constitute the Swinburne University Emotional Intelligence Test (SUEIT; Palmer & Stough, 2002) in moderating the ongoing psychological impact of multiple negative life events that occurred in the preceding 2 years. The SUEIT was chosen for its robust psychometric properties, well-defined scales, rigorous testing history (Gignac, 2005, Gignac, 2010) and alignment with Salovey et al.’s (1999) theoretical postulate. The six EI dimensions concern: (1) awareness of emotions in self, and (2) others, (3) emotional expression, (4) emotional self-control, (5) emotional management of self, and (6) others. Research in related fields highlights the potential buffering effects of the six EI dimensions.

Research focused on alexithymia, a condition characterized by poor emotional self-awareness, indicates that persons afflicted typically fail to respond to rising stress levels until distress is fully-blown (Martin & Pihl, 1986). They often experience more severe symptoms and longer periods of recovery in the aftermath of stressful events than more perceptive persons, who deploy personal coping resources earlier and more effectively (Naatanen, Ryynanen, & Keltikangas-Jarvinen, 1999).

Perspective taking is an important tool in developing quality social relationships (Soenens, Duriez, Vansteenkiste, & Goossens, 2007), which are a well established source of psychological support (Kessler, 1997). Propensity to anticipate and account for the feelings of others may therefore play a role in facilitating greater personal psychological resilience.

Emotional expression through overt channels, such as voice and musculature, has been found to result in attenuation of physiological reactivity and associated psychological symptoms. On the other hand, inhibition results in retention of physiological arousal and psychological agitation, which over time manifests in physical illness (Franz, Schaefer, & Schneider, 2003), and mental health symptoms (Wastell, 2002).

Persons with poor emotional control are more likely to respond to personal distress with anti-social behaviours (Roger & Najarian, 1989), driving supportive persons away (Benotsch, Christensen, & McKelvey, 1997). Moreover, impulsive behaviour often translates into unhealthy coping behaviours such as substance use (Salovey, 2001) Consequently, higher levels of distress are experienced when faced with stressful situations (Roger & Najarian, 1989).

Persons able to self-induce positive moods are happier in both positive and negative circumstances (Ciarrochi, Chan, & Caputi, 2000), and tend to be more physically and mentally healthy (Extremera & Fernandez-Berrocal, 2002). They engage more frequently in active coping behaviours such as problem-solving, self-pep talks and physical exercise (Salovey, Stroud, Woolery, & Epel, 2002).

Persons able to induce positive moods in others often have greater access to social supports (Ciarrochi, Chan, & Bajgar, 2001). They are more willing to seek help when feeling overwhelmed, and to benefit (Ciarrochi & Deane, 2001).

Evidently, there are a variety of ways in which EI can potentially buffer individuals against life event distress. Why then did Ciarrochi et al. (2002), and Day et al. (2005) fail to find substantive support for this position? One possible answer stems from the fact that moderator effects are notoriously difficult to detect in observational field studies, using traditional moderated multiple regression procedures. The measurement error typical of non-experimental variables creates levels of noise that make reliable effects hard to detect. Compounding this, measurement error is exacerbated when independent variables are multiplied together to form moderator variables (McClelland & Judd, 1993). This makes moderator effects even harder to detect.

In light of this, we used a different approach to explore the question of whether persons with higher EI scores are more resilient to the effects of multiple events. We performed a series of latent class regression analyses to determine whether the relationship between the frequency of negative events experienced in the past two years and psychological distress was relatively homogenous across all participants in the study, or, whether the strength of this effect differed across participants to the extent that latent classes of participants better represented the data. (i.e. whether there were distinct clusters of participants who varied according to their event-distress regression scores).

In line with previous research, it was expected that there would be a latent class (i.e. cluster) of participants who would demonstrate a significantly stronger association between life events and distress (a vulnerable group). Conversely, it was expected that there would be at least a second latent class that would demonstrate a non-significant or weaker life events – distress relationship (i.e., a resilient group). Moreover it was expected that EI would discriminate between these two classes in that the vulnerable group would have lower EI scores, whereas the resilient group would have higher EI scores.

Section snippets

Participants and procedure

Members from 56, life event focused, online discussion forums (e.g. healingwell.com; widownet.org; joblayoffsupport.com) were invited to complete an online survey. Of 1156 persons who answered the first survey question, 414 (48.5%) completed the survey and were of the age of adult consent. Participants were mostly women (76%), aged between 24 and 58 (M = 36.7, SD = 12.4), who had completed a university degree (60%). Most were in paid employment (42% full-time, 17% part-time). A smaller number were

Results

Table 1 presents descriptive statistics and correlations among the variables. On average, the sample remained negatively affected by five events that had occurred in the past 2 years, and reported distress symptoms consistent with mild depression, anxiety and stress. EI levels were comparable to those reported by Gignac (2005). All six dimensions were positively interrelated, and most were negatively related to life events and distress.

Discussion

The current study sought to identify which participants were more and less successful at adapting to the emotional demands of stressful events, and to identify the extent to which individual differences in adaptation could be attributed to respective aspects of emotional intelligence. The study found that the relationship between negative life events and distress varied as a function of four intrapersonal EI dimensions. The life event-distress relationship was weaker for participants with

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