Sociocultural context of emotional intelligence development of 5-7 year old children.

Abstract

Sociocultural context of the development of emotional intelligence development of 5-7 year old children. Emotional intelligence is an important component in the process of a person's life; it affects the effectiveness of his relationship with the others and determines his emotional well-being. Emotional intelligence includes two main characteristics: the recognition of emotions and their expression. The expression of emotions is related to the culture within which the child is brought up. The study, which involved 5-7 year old children living in different sociocultural settings (orphanages and families), showed that, while recognizing the emotions; the children of both groups correctly determined only the basic emotions. The emotions that are the "product" of social relations (offense, pensive) were best determined by children living in families. Verbal descriptions of emotions and the prediction (regulation) of further behaviour based on emotions were also better implemented by the children raised in families. The results of the pilot study suggest that the distinction and description of emotions, as a part of emotional intelligence, by 5-7 year old children depends on the social experience obtained in a particular environment of upbringing.