Trait emotional intelligence, psychological well-being and peer-rated social competence in adolescence

Abstract

The trait emotional intelligence (trait El or trait emotional self-efficacy) framework provides comprehensive coverage of emotion-related self-perceptions and dispositions. In this study, we investigated the relationship between trait El and four distinct socioemotional criteria on a sample of Dutch adolescents (N = 282; 136 girls, 146 boys; mean age = 13.75 years). As hypothesized, trait El was positively associated with adaptive coping styles and negatively associated with depressive thoughts and frequency of somatic complaints. It was also negatively associated with maladaptive coping styles, in boys only. Adolescents with high trait El scores received more nominations from their classmates for being co-operative and girls gave significantly more nominations to classmates with high trait El scores for having leadership qualities. The discussion focusses on the operationalization of trait emotional self-efficacy in adolescents. © 2007 The British Psychological Society.