Emotional Intelligence and Post-Secondary Education: What Have We Learned and What Have We Missed?

Abstract

The transition from high school to a post-secondary setting is a stressful period for most individuals, and difficulties with social and emotional adjustment are strong predictors of student dropout and underachievement. In this context, emotional intelligence (EI) has been studied as a possible explanatory variable for a range of post-secondary adjustment and attainment outcomes. However, the empirical evidence from two decades of research is rather mixed. In this chapter, we summarize the current state of evidence on the links between EI and post-secondary outcomes, review several mediating pathways through which EI may impact these outcomes, and point out important methodological limitations that have confounded research in this area. Using examples from our own research program, we demonstrate that careful treatment of these methodological issues yields informative and promising results. We then discuss a number of practical applications of EI in postsecondary settings, from utilizing EI assessments to improve the delivery of student services to targeted EI interventions. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: chapter)