Emotional Intelligence For Moral Character: Do Emotion-Related Competencies Lead To Better Moral Functioning?

Abstract

The present study examines three components of moral character: moral competencies, moral judgment and moral identity and seeks to understand how emotion-related competencies are linked these moral categories. The aim of the study is twofold, first to discover integrative linkages between different components of moral character and secondly, to understand the inclusive roles of emotion-related competencies (e.g., Trait Emotional Intelligence) in different categories of morality. A total of 318 individuals (Mage = 21.75 years; SDage = 2.24, 65% female) filled the questionnaires measuring moral judgment, moral competencies, moral identity and Trait Emotional Intelligence (TEI). Moral identity and competencies positively correlated with each other and with TEI; however, moral judgment does not appear in the same path: it related only with one aspect of TEI-emotional well-being. Also, TEI emerged as a mediator of relationship between moral identity and moral competence. By integrating three components of moral character (competence, judgment and identity) and linking them to the emotional competencies, study nuances the dynamics and power of relationship between moral and emotional realms.