On the Feasible Linkages between Iranian Academic EFL Learners‟ Emotional Intelligence Level and Their Lexico-semantic Errors in Writing

Abstract

Successive to more than two decades of stringent probes into various aspects of EQ gains, now the field of emotional intelligence enjoys an unparalleled status. In an attempt to address one of the untouched realms relevant to EQ, 100 Iranian academic EFL students were randomly chosen form PNU (Payam-e-Noor University) and Islamic Azad University of Mahabad and Boukan. The purpose of the current study was to find whether the learners’ emotional intelligence level significantly correlated with their performance in terms of lexico-semantic errors. The main instrument utilized for data collection was Bar-on’s Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i, Bar-on, 1997). For being able to tap the learners’ lexico-semantic errors, they were asked to write two short paragraphs. Texts were, then, read through with the aim of identifying the lexico-semantic deviants. In order to cater for reliability concerns, three raters corrected the participants’ papers. As the findings of the study helped reveal, the learners’ EI level was found to have a significant amount of correlation with lexico-semantic errors of female and male academic EFL students. Nevertheless, gender didn’t act as an important determiner of learners’ EQ and their lexico-semantic errors. It is also worth noting that all fifteen EQ subscales were found to have sufficient predictive value as to the learners’ lexico-semantic errors. It was also fascinating to find that out of the fifteen subscales of EI questionnaire, happiness had the highest predictive value with respect to the learners’ lexico-semantic errors.