Emotional intelligence in psychology: Why it matters for students
If you’re looking for ways to succeed as a student and eventual professional in psychology, consider focusing on emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence, commonly referred to as EI, includes a set of personal skills that affect the way you understand and process your emotions and the emotional information you receive from others. Whether you’re in the early stages of earning a bachelor’s degree in psychology or an advanced student in a master’s degree or doctorate program, emotional intelligence can impact your academic performance, leadership potential and overall well-being.
Emotional intelligence, commonly referred to as EI, includes a set of personal skills that affect the way you understand and process your emotions and the emotional information you receive from others.
What is EI?
“Emotional intelligence is basically two things. First, emotional intelligence is the ability to recognize, understand and respond effectively to the emotions you detect from the people around you…. Second, it’s the ability to identify, articulate and manage your own emotions. Some would call this emotional self-regulation,” says Randal M. Ernst, EdD, Professor Emeritus of Education at Nebraska Wesleyan University.
The social-emotional skills involved in emotional intelligence affect your language, behavior, patterns and performance. These traits are often categorized into the following four domains:
- Self-awareness
- Social awareness
- Self-management
- Relationship management
Benefits of high emotional intelligence
Research indicates that there are strong positive links between emotional intelligence and academic achievement. In a study of the emotional intelligence of university students, researchers reported that, “…emotional intelligence was positively related to positive psychological characteristics, psychological well-being and academic achievement, and the effects were stronger among postgraduate students.”
In daily student life, your ability to appropriately recognize and respond to the emotions of others can impact the way you communicate and build stronger relationships in situations such as working on group projects or speaking with your professors. Being able to recognize and manage your own emotions can affect your ability to identify and correct your weaknesses, manage stress and make good decisions.
Being able to recognize and manage your own emotions can affect your ability to identify and correct your weaknesses, manage stress and make good decisions.
“The number one benefit for students with higher EI is that you tend to get along with your classmates better. If you’re getting along well with your peers, there’s a good chance that this would have a positive impact on your mental well-being, given that good relationships can act as a buffer against the things that might otherwise bring us down or put us in a bad mood,” said Ernst.
Emotional intelligence also equips you to know how to manage difficult situations and cope with stress, which can help improve your overall well-being. “Having EI also tends to be useful in working through tough academic times, given that high EI people show that they can identify and control the positive (and negative) emotions that might be useful when studying, working in a small group or taking a test.”
A high level of emotional intelligence can also be an asset as you move on to a career in psychology. “Generally speaking, whether you’re conducting research or practicing in a therapy situation, leveraging the EI can come in very handy,” said Ernst.
Key aspects of emotional intelligence can help psychologists better understand client emotions and do a better job. Psychologists with high emotional intelligence are more likely to have the following characteristics:
- An enhanced ability to build rapport with clients to establish trust and build a better therapeutic alliance
- More individualized communication strategies
- Advanced active listening skills
- A more comprehensive and accurate assessment of clients’ needs
- More tailored interventions
- Better self-regulation skills to cope with the emotional demands of the profession
“Certainly, if EI truly does help you identify and empathize with the emotions you’re seeing in someone else, the positive impact of high EI in a therapy situation would be immeasurably good. And if, clinically speaking, you can help someone learn the skills of EI in a way that makes their life better (perhaps through increased mental well-being), then we could say that teaching EI [to psychology students] is indeed important.”
Building emotional intelligence
If you’re unsure about the level of your emotional intelligence level, there are many ways to measure it. One type of formal testing involves self-reported questionnaires scored by a psychologist. Other options include tests based on the observation or analysis of your emotional intelligence skills. These tests focus on your abilities to perceive, regulate and utilize emotions. You can also access free emotional intelligence tests online to conduct your own assessment.
You can likely get a general perspective of your emotional intelligence by taking some time for honest reflection. Talking to peers, fellow students and others with whom you closely interact can also provide valuable feedback on how others perceive your interactions and responses. “Those exhibiting less EI are typically more straightforward, direct and honest than their high EI counterparts. Those higher in EI tend to be more empathetic toward others, navigate conflict better and exhibit effective social skills in social situations. Effective leaders tend to be high in EI,” said Ernst.
Don’t be discouraged if you find that your level of emotional intelligence is not what you hope. With focused effort, you may be able to increase your emotional intelligence. “This can be an uphill climb because, like any skill you’re trying to learn, it takes practice. There are lots and lots of things you can do to build EI. First, you have to want to learn more about EI and also want to get better at it. This means you have to be open to what it takes to get better at it. Second, you need to learn what you can control and what you can’t as a student. …you can’t control what a teacher or professor puts on a test, but you can control how much you prepare.”
Here are some other strategies that Ernst suggests you can do to develop a higher level of emotional intelligence:
- Practice active listening:
- When someone is telling you good news, focus on the person telling the good news. Don’t look at your watch, at your phone or at another person. Use non-verbal cues such as smiles and nodding to communicate that you are genuinely interested. Ask follow-up questions such as ‘How did you find out? Who did you tell first?’ to deepen your understanding of the news.
- Practice empathy:
- Place yourself in the other person’s shoes when they talk to you about a challenge they are facing. Resist the urge to immediately start telling one of your own stories. Focus on their need to share something that elicited some kind of mental or physical struggle.
- Practice, when appropriate (perhaps while in a group), paying attention to and identifying non-verbal cues while listening to someone:
- A speaker’s facial expressions, body language and tone of voice can be just as important as what’s being said to you. Work with a friend who is doing this at the same time, then compare what you saw after the conversation ends.
- Journal about the things that were meaningful to you each day:
- One of the tenets of EI is self-awareness. Journaling can help you identify what your dominant emotions were about the events you find most meaningful.
- Ask for feedback about your interactions with others from your best, most trusted friend:
- If you hear something you don’t like, reflect, take ownership and consider adapting in the future.