Abstract
Emotional intelligence (EI) and mindfulness are two constructs that have been separately studied, and the relation between them still remains unclear. Research in this area has not attempted to go further into how enhancing EI and mindfulness together can achieve better improvements in this ability to attend mindfully. To bridge this knowledge gap, our research goal was to study the relationship between EI and the mindfulness competence in our study sample and to assess the impact of implementing EI and a mindfulness competence developmental program (SEA) about participants’ mindfulness competence. The sample consisted of 156 students aged 11–14 years old from a Spanish public high school. One hundred and eight participants were randomly assigned to the experimental condition, and the remaining 48 were to the control condition. The instruments used to evaluate EI were the CDE-SEC, EQi-Youth Version and the General Empathy Scale. Mindfulness on the School Scope Scale was used to assess mindfulness competences. Social adaptation was evaluated by using the social abilities and adjustment questionnaire BAS3. All the instruments where answered by the participants and have been adapted to a sample of youths with such age specifications. The results showed that EI and mindfulness were related to many of the variables measured by the instruments. Showing a good mindfulness competence was particularly related to having a good general level of the EI trait, and to many of the assessed social and emotional variables. The data indicated a significant relation between the mindfulness competence and having better general empathy skills or being better socially adjusted to the school context. The data also indicated a significant effect on participants’ interior and kinesthetic mindfulness competence after implementing the SEA Program. These findings corroborate the relationship between EI and mindfulness, and the possibility of enhancing mindfulness by applying a direct intervention program in the classroom.
Highlights
Interest in how emotional intelligence (EI) can influence academic, professional and social success in a person’s development has significantly increased in recent years (Collaborative for Academic Social and Emotional Learning [CASEL], 2015)
In order to verify or refute the research hypotheses, the obtained results were analyzed, first in relation to the link between the EI and mindfulness competences, which were characteristic of the study phase 1, and to look further at the improvements found after applying the program in phase 2
It has been suggested that such a mindfulness competence can be enhanced by direct intervention in the classroom, which is relatively short and seeks to promote emotional aspects, together with the ability to fully attend time after time
Summary
Interest in how emotional intelligence (EI) can influence academic, professional and social success in a person’s development has significantly increased in recent years (Collaborative for Academic Social and Emotional Learning [CASEL], 2015). The social and emotional learning (SEL) concept has been defined as educational innovation that is justified in social needs whose purpose is to develop emotional competences that contribute to better personal and social well-being (Bisquerra, 2003). This interest has led many researchers to study the theoretical basis of the construct and its components. The relation between EI and other possibly related constructs has been found to be intimately linked to emotional development One of these constructs is mindfulness, whose relationship with EI has received little attention. As how they are related has not always been clear and so, in this paper, we study the basis of them both and the possible relation between them
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