Baccalaureate nursing education is designed to facilitate the development of caring as translated into affective characteristics of professional values, such as altruism, autonomy, human dignity, integrity, and social justice (American Association of Colleges of Nursing [AACN], 2008). Nursing programs introduce students to the necessary content and clinical application to be a successful nurse. The question is: Are nurse educators fostering growth of Emotional Intelligence? Nursing graduates must not only be competent in technical and critical thinking skills, but also be equipped to manage the emotions of patients, caregivers, and other professionals working to ensure optimal patient outcomes (Shanta & Gargiulo, 2014; Senyuva, Kaya, Isik, & Bodur, 2014). A study by Ruiz-Aranda, Extremera, et al. (2014) states that health professional students with higher EI scores reported less perceived stress and higher levels of life satisfaction. Research in nursing practice links increased EI scores to effective leadership roles (Codier, 2014). However, there is minimal research on the relationship between EI and baccalaureate nursing education.
The purpose of this presentation is to disseminate the findings of a research study conducted to determine if baccalaureate nursing students measured EI changed while in the professional nursing program. A quantitative longitudinal design was used to compare the EI scores of nursing students in the second semester of the professional, upper division, baccalaureate nursing program and again in the fifth semester (final semester) of the program. The instrument used to measure emotional intelligence for this study was the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT) which is an ability measure. The MSCEIT measures EI ability and therefore results are based on the actual ability of executing a task and not only on the belief in such an ability. The reliability and validity of the instrument for the total EI score is r = .93. The overall findings of the longitudinal study revealed EI decreased over the course of a baccalaureate program. Statistically significant decreases were found in the EI subscales of perceiving emotions and managing emotions. Two other subscales, understanding and facilitating emotions, were measured and a decrease was found, however it was not statistically significant. This is a troubling finding that urges intervention.
Baccalaureate nursing programs are primarily focused on student’s cognitive abilities which can result in cognitive overload. Focusing on students emotional abilities are often overlooked, but research shows these abilities are critical in the nursing profession and should be scaffolded throughout nursing education programs (Foster et al., 2017). The findings of this longitudinal study support integration of EI content into baccalaureate curricula. Utilizing the Ability Model EI framework may facilitate synthesis and application of EI concepts in nursing education. This framework reflects four abilities (subscales): a) perception of emotion; b) facilitation of emotion c) understanding and analyzing emotions, and d) management of emotion. These EI concepts could be incorporated in the nursing curricula using various active learning strategies. This presentation will further discuss the application of each EI concept and the impact it has on nursing education.