Emotional Intelligence and Sports Performance Among Malaysian Ethnics

Abstract

Athlete must recognize one’s emotions, as well as their opponents and teammates emotions, in order to perform well in sports. For athletes, higher emotional intelligence has been linked to higher performance in sports. Previous studies showed that only scant research done on emotional intelligence in sports compared emotional intelligence among the athletes. It was also evident that comparing emotional intelligence on different ethnic, whom come from different culture, was very limited. The aim of this research was to compare the level of emotional intelligence among different ethnic of athletes and their sports performance. It sought to correlate the relationship between emotional intelligence and sports performance of athletes from different ethnics (Malay, Chinese and Indians). Emotional intelligence scale (EIS) and Sport Performance Questionnaire were used to collect the data. The sample consisted of 217 athletes, who competed in Majlis Sukan University Malaysia (MASUM), also known as Malaysian University Sports Council. The result of this research showed that overall Chinese athlete scored higher in emotional intelligence and Indians, the lowest. The result also showed that the existence of a strong positive relationship between emotional intelligence and sports performance. Sports psychologist and coaches can use the findings to apply coping strategies to enhance emotional intelligence among Indian and Malay athletes.