The relation of emotional intelligence with social and job adjustment among health care centers staffs Abstract Mahnaz Babaei* Department of Social and Political Sciences Golestan University, Iran Dr.mbabaei2@gmail.com Mahmoud Reza Cheraghali Department of Social and Political Sciences Golestan University, Iran m.cheraghali@gu.ac.ir The present research studied the relation of emotional intelligence with social and job adjustment among health care centers personnel in Neka city, Iran. This is a correlation descriptive study. Statistical population consists of all staffs of health care centers in Neka city in 2014-2015 ob. Convenience sampling obtaining volume of 60was done. The applied questionnaires included both Petrides and Furnham Emotional Intelligence adjustment and social and job adjustment questionnaires extracted from Bell Adjustment Inventory. Obtained data analyzed using Pearson correlation test and multiple regression analysis. The results showed that emotional intelligence and its subscales correlated with social and job adjustment of health care centers staffs. Moreover, emotional intelligence can relatively predict individuals social and job adjustment. Conclusion High emotional intelligence would facilitate the ability to recognize and organize emotions and adaptation (compatibility) with situations; further, it enhances psychological well-being. Keywords: Emotional intelligence, job adjustment, social adjustment, health care centers. http://www.ijhcs.com/index.php/ijhcs/index Page 353
Introduction Salvei and Mayer introduced the idea of emotional intelligence in 1990, and later it increasingly drew much attention among industrial and organizational psychologists as a psychological factor in predicting staffs behavior [1]. Emotional intelligence is a typical process of emotional information, which contains proper evaluation of self and others emotions, proper emotions means and adaptive emotions regulation [2]. It also is a multi-factorial area of a set of social skills and competencies influencing individual abilities in recognizing excitement understanding and management, problem solving, adaptability, as well. It effectively adjusts the individual with life needs (requirements), pressures, and challenges [3]. The individuals with high emotional intelligence own the art of communicating with people, and skill of controlling others emotions. Such expertise enhances personal influence, leadership, and popularity and leads the individual to more achievements in any social activity and intimate interaction. These individuals with internal insight of self and others emotional desires, develop the best performance in different situations [4]. Kirochi believes that emotional intelligence is associated with the ability of self- and others-understanding, interaction, as well as individual adaptability to the surrounding. In other word, non-cognitive intelligence makes predicting individual achievements possible. In addition, its measuring corresponds estimating the individual capabilities for adapting with life conditions and survival in the world [5]. Adjustment (compatibility) is one of emotional intelligence components. It embraces flexibility, problem solving, and individual realism consisting of a. problem solving: the ability to recognize and define problems and to create and apply effective solutions; b. reality testing: the ability to evaluate the relation between emotional experience and existing objectivities; c. flexibility: the ability to deal with emotions, thoughts, and behaviors in various situations [6]. Human capital is the vital strategic element and the basic approach to the organizations efficiency and efficacy. Thus, personnel personality traits are determining factors of how to deal with organizational variables and conditions, as well as working motivations. Mayer and Salvey view emotional intelligence as one of individual personality traits [7]. Emotional intelligence is the subject of several studies on management and job performance. Golman, in a study on working with emotional intelligence, introduced the notion of emotional intelligence as competency model for working conditions. He believes that staffs with emotional intelligence get expertise in two key dimensions including personal competencies (i.e. how people manage themselves) and social competencies (how people manage their relation to others)[8]. Emotional intelligence can also be considered as staffs job adjustment determining factor. The term job adjustment often used for summarizing a process in which any individual enhances its total skills and expertise to meet working environment requirements. http://www.ijhcs.com/index.php/ijhcs/index Page 354
Straser and Lasting believe that job adjustment determined by reduced conflict and increased efficiency in job. Moreover, Kiang J and Young Chi You also expressed that job adjustment contains beginning and explaining the behaviors leading to properly fulfilling the required tasks and positive attitude toward new working role [9]. Research results also revealed that those individuals with high emotional intelligence have higher compatibility, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment comparing other individuals; further, they experience less job burnout [10, 11, and 12]. Another feature influenced by emotional intelligence is social adjustment, which contributes in staff organizational performance. Social adjustment referred as a stream establishing satisfactory relations among individuals, groups, and cultural elements. It is a continuous quantity gradually approaches to perfection like physical, emotional, and rational growth; it naturally achieves confronting with experiences [13]. Studies demonstrate that emotional intelligence is an effective factor in social adjustment playing an important role in adjustment power and social acceptance. Loupes et al in a study concluded that emotional skills are critical for emotional and social adjustment [14]. Other studies also showed that (5, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19) emotional intelligence has significant relation with social adjustment. Generally, it can be stated that emotional intelligence provides emotional well being, improved interpersonal relations, and social adjustments through enhancing mental health and helps people to get more success in life. Furthermore, it is the greatest predictive factor of the individual performance in working condition and the strongest power for leadership and achievement. The individuals apply emotional intelligence have higher adjustment with surrounding environment, show high self-confidence, and acknowledge their abilities [20]. Thus, the present research is conducted focusing on studying the relation between emotional intelligence with job and social adjustment so that enable individuals to increase effective encountering and control strategies, as well as predictive mechanisms in working environment through recognizing and enhancing emotional intelligence capabilities and to improve the quality of social and job adjustment and relations. Method This is a descriptive correlation study. Statistical population contains all health care centers personnel in Neka city in 2014-2015. Convenience sampling was done and a volume sample of 60 introduced. Research questionnaires were Petrides and Furnham Emotional Intelligence questionnaire as well as social adjustment and job adjustment questionnaires extracted from BeLL Adjustment Inventory. Obtained data analyzed using Pearson correlation test and multiple regression analysis. http://www.ijhcs.com/index.php/ijhcs/index Page 355
Measurement tools 1. Petrides and Furnham Emotional Intelligence questionnaire It consists of 30 items of 1-7 scoring scale from 1 (Totally disagree) to 7 (Totally agree). Total scores of each dimension give the questionnaire total score. It is worth notifying that half of the questions inversely scored. Petrides and Furnham (2002) calculated the questionnaire s perfect internal consistency as 86%. Reliability index obtained through items internal consistency by using Chronbach alpha coefficient 0.81 demonstrating the questionnaire proper reliability [21]. Moreover, Ahmadi Azghandi et al reported the questionnaire Chronbach alpha coefficient equals 0.76[22]. 2.Bell Adjustment Inventory It was formulated, in 1961, by Bell embracing five adjustment dimensions including adjustment at home, health adjustment, social adjustment, emotional adjustment, and job adjustment. Questions related to different aspects of adjustment are distributed in the questionnaire each answered by Yes, No, I do not know choices. Items scored in term of normalized table. The validity of test-retest in test guidance reported from.70-.93 and internal consistency varied from.74 to.93. Bell (1962) reported subscales validity coefficients of.91,.81,.88,.91,.85, and.94 for home adjustment, health adjustment, social adjustment, job adjustment subscales, and total test, respectively. In addition, Bahrami (1992) in a study reported measurable parts including total adjustment, home adjustment, health adjustment, social adjustment, emotional adjustment, and job adjustment at alpha coefficient of.89 [23]. Results As seen in Table 1, there is a positive, significant relation between emotional intelligence total score and social and job adjustments subscales at (P<0.001). This means that increasing emotional intelligence or any of its components, social and job adjustments in individuals increase, too and vice versa. Moreover, according to data of Table 2 of determining the effect of emotional intelligence components on the variance of social and job adjustment, emotional intelligence components analyzed as predictors and social and job adjustment as predicted in a regression equation. According to the results of variance analysis, the obtained value is significant (P<0.001) and the variance of social and job adjustment explained through emotional intelligence subscales. Furthermore, regression coefficients of each predictor show that emotional intelligence subscales can significantly explain social and job adjustment variance. http://www.ijhcs.com/index.php/ijhcs/index Page 356
Table 1: Research variables Correlation Coefficients variables Optimistic Understanding emotions Controlling emotions Social skills Total emotional intelligence 0.45 0.41 0.38 0.41 0.65 Social adjustment 0.001** 0.03 * * 0.02 0.04 * 0.001 ** 0.47 0.52 0.46 0.39 0.57 Job adjustment 0.001** 0.03 * 0.04* 0.02* 0.05 * Table 2: Summarizing regression model, variance analysis of job and social adjustment variables on emotional intelligence subscales Predictors Predicted F P R R 2 B t P Understanding 5.93 0.001 0.24 0.37 0.25 4.8 0.001 emotions Controlling emotions Social adjustment 7.87 0.001 0.33 0.28 0.36 3.1 0.001 Social skills 13.43 0.001 0.42 0.43 0.24 8.56 0.001 Optimism 9.98 0.001 o.22 0.29 0.19 5.4 0.001 Total emotional 11.32 0.37 0.44 0.31 3.45 0.001 intelligence Understanding 4.79 0.001 0.19 0.42 0.43 4.2 0.001 emotions Controlling emotions Job adjustment 8.21 0.001 0.37 0.27 0.35 2.98 0.001 Social skills 11.64 0.001 0.35 0.39 0.41 3.17 0.001 Optimism 6.5 0.001 0.41 0.21 0.39 4.83 0.001 Total emotional 10.32 0.001 0.38 0.38 0.37 5.84 0.001 intelligence Discussion This study conducted focused on studying the relation between emotional intelligence with job and social adjustment in health care centers staff in Neka city. Data analysis showed that using Pearson correlation test and multivariable regression analysis there is a positive, significant relation between emotional intelligence total score and its subscales (optimism, understanding self and others emotions, evaluating emotions and social skills) with job adjustment among health care centers staffs. Further, emotional intelligence can relatively predict job adjustment. This finding is consistent with previous research results [10, 11, and 12]. Indeed, it can be stated that high emotional capacity enables the individual to apply positive temper and required tolerance threshold so that achieves the best behavior and desired adjustment. Since individuals have different emotional capacities and various desires and inclinations considerably different from individual desires and inclinations [24]. http://www.ijhcs.com/index.php/ijhcs/index Page 357
Staffs with high emotional intelligence better understand, recognize, and coordinate self and others emotions. The ability to understand others emotions can help to get more knowledge of the factors contributing in creating negative and positive emotional experiences. Being aware of the factors creating the emotions and understanding the effect of such emotions enables high emotional intelligence staffs to operate properly. In addition, staffs with high emotional intelligence achieve more adjustment encountering working stresses in comparison to staffs with low emotional intelligence [25]. Another variable studied in this research is the relation between emotional intelligence with social adjustment among staffs. The results showed that there is a positive, significant relation between total number of emotional intelligence and its subscales (including optimism, understanding self, and others emotions, evaluating social skills and emotions) with social adjustment. Emotional intelligence can relatively explain staffs social adjustment, this finding are consistent with the results of previous studies [5, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19]. It seems that the higher level of individual emotional intelligence, the more assist of emotional facilitation feature to face social environment stresses and issues by organizing ideas, memory, and memory contents in a much more comprehensive way. Moreover, emotional facilitation feature by positive behavioral changing helps individual to better adapt with environment and environmental stimuli [15]. Individuals with high emotional intelligence have more selfawareness; and in fact, deeply understand emotions, strengths and weaknesses, needs and histories; further, they have the capability of evaluating, directing, and controlling life events, which clearly contribute in creating an insight of self and surrounding. It also emotionally enhances the person s adaptability and avoids emotions dominance [4]. And finally, the individuals with high intelligence not only have the ability of appropriately and realistically recognizing emotions and stressful events, but also are more successful in applying the approaches and strategies to achieve desired adjustment. Conclusion In general, the findings indicate that individuals successful adjustment depends on integrated performance of emotional capabilities. Indeed, emotional intelligence plays a critical role under the shadow of compatibility with experiences and stressful events in predicting prospective desired objectives as well as adjusting with chronic stresses. Thus, it is necessary to teach emotional intelligence components to health care centers staffs in order to enhance the ability to cope with problems and effective adjustment. http://www.ijhcs.com/index.php/ijhcs/index Page 358
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