Emotional Intelligence and Positive Self-Concept

From November 2008 archived blog
by Lynne Cox

Have you ever had one of those students in your class who just seemed to “have it all together?” I think you know the student I am referring to. This student is self-confident without being cocky; handles daily challenges with maturity, grace, and humor; is prepared for class each day; participates in class discussions and projects in a positive manner; and still manages to “look cool” among his/her friends. This kid may not have the highest IQ in the class, but this kid has figured out how to successfully manage relationships with different kinds of people. In the world of academia, we call this kid emotionally intelligent. Emotional Intelligence (EI), conceived by Daniel Goleman, is defined as the ability to think and react appropriately to our emotions and is a determining factor in how well we use other skills we possess, including intellect. EI is perhaps one of my favorite topics to read about. There is an existing body of research which supports the theory that EI is more important than IQ in predicting a student’s future success in school and in work. My personal teaching and child-rearing experiences concur with the research. One of the characteristics of a person with high EI is a positive feeling about self or a positive self concept.

Self-concept as a theoretical construct is important to the field of education because a positive self-concept is considered to be both a desirable trait as well as a facilitator of positive future behavior (Marsh, 1993). Positive student self-concept has been linked to academic achievement in core classes (Marsh, et. al., 1985), specific performance arts programs (Marsh, et. al., 1996) and positive classroom characteristics in the domains of cooperation, persistence, leadership, anxiety, expectations for future schooling, family support, behavior in class, and peer interactions (Hay, et. al., 1998). General self-concept (esteem) is considered by laypersons and professionals to be an important component in understanding human behavior (Wylie, 1989) and is considered by many researchers to be the basis for all motivated behavior (Franken, 1994).

The current, generally accepted self-concept model, referred to as the Marsh/Shavelson model of self-concept, is predicated on the idea that “children construct complex perceptions of themselves through their experiences with their world and their interpretations of their own place within it” (Smith and Croom, p. 312). Given how much time children spend in a classroom each day, it seems logical to investigate the impact of those experiences on students’ self-concepts. At the secondary level, Texas students may spend anywhere from 50 minutes to 2 hours each day in a Career and Technical Education (CTE) class. It seems logical, therefore, to investigate in particular the relationship between participation in CTE and student self-concept. 

In the next six months I plan to conduct research to examine this relationship. I believe we have some amazing and “cool” kids in our CTE programs in Texas. I know this is in part the result of your efforts to provide a quality education in the CTE classroom. Watch the CTE blog for future postings on this topic! In my ideal world, all teachers would use research-based methods for developing self-confident, mature, graceful, prepared, positive, and well-liked individuals who are ready to positively contribute to society when they leave high school. Wouldn’t it be great if more of our students could “have it all together?” 

References

1. Franken, R. (1994). Human motivation (3rd ed.). Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole Publishing Co.
2. Hay, I., Ashman, A. F., & Van Kraayenoord, C. E.,(1998). Educational characteristics of students with high or low self-esteem. Psychology in the Schools, 35(4), 391-400.
3. Marsh, H. W. & Shavelson, R. J. (1985). Self-concept: Its multifaceted, hierarchical structure. Educational Psychologist, 20, 107-125.
4. Smith, K. E., & Croom, L.(2001). Multidimensional self-concepts of children and teacher beliefs about developmentally appropriate practices. The Journal of Educational Research, 312-321.
5. Wylie, R. C. (1989). Measures of Self-Concept. Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press.