The Impacts of Emotional Intelligence on Students' Study Habits in Blended Learning Environments: The Mediating Role of Cognitive Engagement during COVID-19.

Javed Iqbal,Xie Yi,Muhammad Azeem Ashraf,Muhammad Zaheer Asghar

doi:10.3390/bs12010014

Abstract

Emotional intelligence is a main area in educational psychology and a key factor in the academic life of students. It deals with deviant behavior through self-awareness and self-motivation, regulates emotional and social skills, and converts emotional energy into positive energy. This study examined direct and indirect relationships between emotional intelligence and study habits in blended learning environments. Blended learning is conceptualized as a hybrid learning approach that combines online learning opportunities and the traditional classroom approach. Furthermore, the study explored the mediating role of cognitive engagement in the relationship between emotional intelligence and study habits. We used 26 items in a paper-based questionnaire in a quantitative study to collect data on emotional intelligence, cognitive engagement and study habits from health sciences students (N = 338) enrolled in blended learning courses in universities in the Hunan province of China. Emotional intelligence included self-awareness, self-motivation, and the regulation of emotion; social skills were also examined. A partial least squares structural-equation modeling approach was applied through SmartPLS software to explore the relationships. The results indicate that self-awareness and self-motivation have direct, significant, and positive connections with study habits. Similarly, the results indicate that all four dimensions of emotional intelligence (self-awareness, self-motivation, emotion regulation and social skills) had indirect, significant, and positive relationships with study habits using cognitive engagement as a mediator variable. It was concluded that students face higher-than-usual challenges in building study habits in blended learning environments during the COVID-19 pandemic, and that emotional intelligence helps them to develop their study habits to greater effect. Similarly, it was concluded that cognitive engagement strengthens the connection between emotional intelligence and study habits. Therefore, it is recommended that universities take specific measures to enhance students’ emotional intelligence and cognitive engagement, which will ultimately improve their study habits. Moreover, valuable and practical implications for teachers, practitioners, and university management were also discussed in the study.

Highlights

IntroductionEmotional intelligence works as an essential predictor of student learning and cognitive health [1]
This study explored the connections between emotional intelligence and study habits through cognitive engagement among students in blended learning environments during COVID-19
The authors claim that the present study is the first to examine the influence of emotional intelligence on the study habits of students studying in blended learning environments in Chinese universities, as it focuses on cognitive engagement as a mediator variable

Summary

Introduction

Emotional intelligence works as an essential predictor of student learning and cognitive health [1]. It provides timely psychological support to cognitive engagement and study habits in the COVID-19 era. Students and teachers have managed the learning process during the pandemic through their emotional intelligence and cognitive engagement in blended learning environments [2]. The situation may affect students’ study habits. Such circumstances provoked the authors to explore the connection between emotional intelligence, cognitive engagement, and study habits in blended learning environments. A VIF value above 5 indicates the presence of a collinearity problem between variables [67]. 5, which is between 1.320 and 1.737, and indicates no collinearity problem among the variables

Methods

Discussion

Conclusion