Abstract
Background: Emotional Intelligence (EI) is the ability to perceive, understand and manage emotions. Higher EI is associated with effective leadership and improved patient outcomes (Sfantou et al., 2017). EI may be developed through training, however the majority of UK pharmacy schools do not explicitly teach leadership. An assessment of M.Pharm. students’ EI may determine whether current teaching supports EI development.
Aims: To measure M.Pharm. students’ EI and explore any variation between and within year groups. Method: All M.Pharm. students at one UK university were invited to complete the short form trait EI questionnaire (TEIQue-SF) online (Petrides, 2009). TEIQue-SF measures an overall global trait EI score and produces separate scores in four domains: well-being, self-control, emotionality and sociability. Participants rated their agreement with 30 statement items on a 7- point Likert scale (1 = strongly disagree, 7 = strongly agree). A mean score was calculated for each measure with higher scores indicating greater EI. An open question was included to capture leadership experience. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to characterise participant responses and explore the relationship with leadership experience. Results: Eighty-two (22%) students participated and the mean ± SD EI score was 5.02 ± 0.7. There was no correlation between EI and year of study. Mean EI score was higher in students with self-identified leadership experience (5.10 ± 0.61) than those without (4.61 ± 0.13, ISTT, p<0.001). Figure 1 illustrates the distribution of domain scores across the different cohorts. Statistical analysis of EI scores across the four domains was prohibited due to the distribution of response.
Figure 1: Distribution of EI domain scores by cohort
Conclusion: Possible explanations for the higher EI scores in those with leadership experience include that those with higher EI are more likely to seek leadership positions or that leadership experience supports the development of higher EI. Further investigation is required to explore how the M.Pharm. degree can support EI development.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 235 |
Number of pages | 1 |
Journal | Pharmacy Education |
Volume | 19 |
Issue number | 1 |
Publication status | Published - 2019 |
Event | Pharmacy Education Conference - University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom Duration: 24 Jun 2019 → 24 Jun 2019 |