Development of Emotional Intelligence in Early Childhood: A Guide for Intervention

Abstract

This paper intends to present a guide to prepare specific programs to develop emotional intelligence in children aged 0-3 years. We believe that, before applying higher age programs, it is critical to understand how prior learning was made. In program development we had in mind three basic theoretical approaches: the theory of the stages of early childhood development of French theorist Henri Wallon, noted for his efforts to describe the child's emotional development and the role of emotions in the building relationships and links between the infant and the outside world; the Emotional Intelligence Model of Mayer and Salovey (2007); and the principles formulated by Carrol Izard on preventive interventions focused on emotion (Izard, 2002).