Emotional Intelligence

Emotional Intelligence (EI) is the unique repertoire of skills that a person uses to navigate the everyday challenges of life. EI has been defined as the “capacity for recognizing our own feelings and those of others, for motivating ourselves, and for managing emotions well in ourselves and our relationships” (Goleman, 1998, pg. 317). Research demonstrates that EI may be more important than Intelligence Quotient (IQ) for promoting academic, personal, and occupational success.

Studies indicate that more students leave college and fail to complete their dissertations because of disillusionment, discouragement, or reduced motivation than because of lack of ability or dismissal by school administration.

Fostering EI can assist you as a student in adapting to the demands of the college environment and the academic process. Likewise, investing in your emotional development can positively impact your effectiveness as a leader in both academic and professional settings. For example, emotional competency development benefits the career development process by promoting a successful transition from college into the workplace.

Making an effective transition to the dissertation process involves successful navigation of a series of environmental demands and pressures, in both the social and emotional spheres. Oftentimes, dissertation students exhibit little independence. Coursework was structured for them, yet now they are faced with developing a topic/research problem and moving forward to complete an independent research study, which may feel overwhelming.

Additionally, managing stress, managing time, initiating self-direction, and learning how to work with and implement feedback from a chair and committee members may also feel daunting. Assessing EI can help identify those skills and abilities essential for students to adapt to the dissertation and collegial environment, such as developing a social support network, adjusting to new academic expectations, and acquiring the intrinsic motivation required to accomplish personal and professional goals.

For this Discussion, you must complete two validated instruments that will help you to discover your strengths: your level of EI and your ability to engage in the practice of mindfulness.

Strengths Finder 2.0

The Strengths Finder 2.0 assessment will help you identify what you naturally do best (i.e., your authentic skill sets).

Emotional Intelligence and Mindfulness Questionnaire (EIQ16-R)

The EIQ16-R will help you improve your emotional intelligence (EI), emotional abilities, and emotional skills. In addition, the mindfulness component will provide you with keen insight into your ability to stay “present” and fully aware in the moment.

Completing these self-assessments will provide you with a wealth of self-knowledge and an increased understanding of how and when you may want to utilize them throughout your doctoral journey. Based on these self-assessments, you will reflect on your results and consider how this self-knowledge can help empower your growth, development, and success as a doctoral student and forensic psychology professional.