Emotional Intelligence and its Relationship to Academic Performance among Intermediate School Students

Abstract

In recent years, there has been an increasing interest in the concept of emotional intelligence and its impact on various aspects of life, including academic achievement. Emotional intelligence is the ability to recognize, understand, and effectively manage emotions, whether they pertain to oneself or others. Based on the growing research in this field, it has become clear that emotional intelligence plays a significant role in enhancing students' academic performance by improving their ability to cope with various daily challenges and stressors in their educational environment.The main objective of this research is to analyze the correlation between emotional intelligence and academic performance. Based on the research problem and its importance, the objectives can be summarized as follows:

1.To identify emotional intelligence among middle school students.

2.To assess the academic performance of middle school students.

3.To explore the relationship between emotional intelligence and academic performance among middle school students.

The researcher employed logical validity by presenting the two questionnaires to a sample of 10 specialists in the field to verify that the questionnaires indeed measure the intended objectives. The results indicated that the dimension of empathy ranked first, followed by the dimension of emotion regulation in second place, while the remaining dimensions related to emotional organization, emotional knowledge, and social communication ranked equally in third place.

The study reveals that many students expressed their inability to fully control their emotions and exhibited varied capabilities in their ability to empathize. Some faced challenges in regulating their emotions. A small majority of students indicated difficulty in being patient in all circumstances. Additionally, the study found that many students in the sample faced issues regarding emotional knowledge. The level of social communication among the sampled students was not characterized by intensity, as half of the sample reported not understanding social cues from others consistently, and some found it difficult to talk to strangers at times.