Emotional Intelligence and Wellness Among Employees Working in the Nursing Environment

The effectiveness of learning strategies for the development of Emotional Intelligence in undergraduate nursing students: A systematic review protocol

AIM

This protocol proposes a systematic review to identify and disclose learning strategies and evaluation tools to improve Emotion Intelligence (EI) in undergraduate nursing students.

BACKGROUND

EI improves the ability to manage emotions and their consequences. Management of emotions is fundamental in nursing both at inter- and intra-professional levels, and with the patients and their family carers.

DESIGN

Systematic review protocol of effectiveness based on the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) guidelines.

REVIEW METHODS

All articles based on educational programmes and/or activities to develop EI in nursing curricula will be included in the review. It will analyse the principle EI attributes and outcomes such as burnout, intention to leave and problem-solving skills. Based on the review question, seven databases will be searched: MEDLINE, The Cochrane Library, SCOPUS, CINAHL, EMBASE, PsycINFO and ERIC. Also, grey literature (Google Scholar and Open Gray) will be searched. Since no similar systematic reviews are present in the literature, no time limits will be set. To establish the quality of studies JBI tools will be used. When appropriate, we will meta-analyse prevalence and incidence estimates or we will meta-synthesize themes and findings.

EXPECTED RESULTS

This systematic review is expected to provide an overview of educational and training methods, pedagogical strategies and evaluation tools to address EI in nursing and provide high-quality care to patients and their families. Results of the review will support nursing educators and leaders in implementing teaching and learning strategies to improve the Emotional Intelligence of undergraduate nursing students.

CONCLUSIONS

Mastering emotions is fundamental for nurses. Implementing education courses based on EI according to the best training methods and pedagogical strategies could become key for nursing curricula. Moreover, after the review, it will be possible to identify the best training methods and pedagogical strategies for implementing continuing professional development (CPD) courses in EI in the courses of following graduation.

Exploring the relationship between managerial emotional intelligence and environmental performance in energy sector: a mediated moderation analysis

Purpose

This study aims to focus on the important role of chief executive directors (CEOs’) emotional intelligence to explain the interactive relationship between research and development (R&D) investment and environmental performance in the energy sector and also to explain how the diversification into new energy technology provides explanations for environmental problems.

Design/methodology/approach

This research was realised through the completion of a questionnaire-type inquiry structured around table-based analysis. Two five-scale questionnaires were completed by CEOs relating to oil and gas industry. The first instrument reflects the level of emotional intelligence. The second instrument indicates elements of environmental performance. A total of 158 firms were approached using a questionnaire, where 112 responses were received and 108 valid responses were used for analysis. The data were analyzed by the partial least squares method.

Findings

The results confirm the positive effect of CEOs’ emotional intelligence on the interaction between R&D, energy and recycling. In addition, the diversification strategy further influences the role of CEOs’ emotional intelligence to provide explanations into a R&D investment for the environmental problems in the Tunisian energy sector. The findings reveal challenges and opportunities for Tunisia’s energy industry to increase R&D investment that will enable the economy to use more environment-friendly devices and technologies that will be reducing pollution.

Originality/value

First, this study indicates the important role of managerial emotional intelligence to explain the impact of R&D investment and help Tunisian energy enterprises look for means to minimise their environmental expenses through raising energy efficiencies, reducing pollution and encouraging reuse and recycling. Second, this study explains how a diversification strategy can mediate the interaction effect of CEO emotional intelligence. The Tunisia oil and gas sector has not been subjected to extensive research and this paper, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, represents a first attempt to provide an overview of the sector.

A Cross-Sectional Study of Empathy and Emotion Management: Key to a Work Environment for Humanized Care in Nursing

Introduction

At the present time, technological advances have increased the technification of healthcare services, in which high priority is given to efficiency and results achieved, leading healthcare personnel to prioritize administrative and procedural aspects to the detriment of humanization of care and the work environment.

Objective

This study was intended to continue progress in research on the work environment based on the humanization construct by analyzing the explanatory value of emotional intelligence and empathy in nursing personnel.

Materials and Methods

The study was quantitative, observational, and cross-sectional. The sample was made up of 338 Spanish nurses with a mean age of 32.20 (SD = 7.54; range 22–56). The instruments employed for analysis were the Healthcare Professional Humanization Scale (HUMAS), Brief Emotional Intelligence Inventory for Adults, and Basic Empathy Scale (BES).

Results

Mood and stress management—both emotional intelligence components—and cognitive empathy explained over half (51%) of the variability found in humanization of care in a sample of nurses. Furthermore, the mediation models proposed emphasized the mediating role of cognitive empathy in stress management and improvement in mood and its relationship to humanization.

Conclusion

It is recommended that healthcare professionals reinforce their personal competencies in order to tend to the needs of their patients empathetically and improve emotional competencies for coping successfully with potentially stressful situations.

Emotional intelligence dimensions as predictors of coping reactions to stress in nursing practitioners

Stress is an inevitable part of nursing life. Nurses need to respond to their stressful environment contents to reduce negative consequences. We examined the role of dimensions of emotional intelligence in predicting coping reactions to stress in 201 college nursing practitioners in this cross-sectional study between November 2017 and January 2018. The nurses appraised their own emotions, but they were not sure that appraised others' emotions, regulated their and others' emotions. They could cope with new ideas and faced obstacles. Most of the nurses were moderately stressed. Those nurses were not able to regulate their own emotions were determined to have a higher level of perceived stress. Active coping, positive reframing and acceptance were the most prevalent coping mechanisms. The investigation showed that others' emotion appraisal was a predictor for self-blame reaction, and emotion utilization was the predictor for positive reframing and self-blame.

The Effect of Emotional Intelligence on Work-Related Psychological Health Among Anglican Clergy in Wales

This study explores the effect of emotional intelligence (assessed by the Schutte Emotional Intelligence Scale) on work-related psychological health (assessed by the two scales of the Francis Burnout Inventory) among 364 Anglican clergy serving in the Church in Wales (264 clergymen, 93 clergywomen, and 7 who did not disclose their sex). After controlling for personal factors (sex and age) and for personality dimensions (extraversion, neuroticism, and psychoticism), the data suggested that higher levels of emotional intelligence enhanced work-related psychological health both in terms of lowering negative affect (emotional exhaustion in ministry) and in terms of increasing positive affect (satisfaction in ministry). These findings suggest that there may be benefits in professional development programmes designed to develop emotional intelligence among clergy.

Systematic review of burnout among healthcare providers in sub-Saharan Africa

BACKGROUND

Burnout is characterized by physical and emotional exhaustion from long-term exposure to emotionally demanding work. Burnout affects interpersonal skills, job performance, career satisfaction, and psychological health. However, little is known about the burden of burnout among healthcare providers in sub-Saharan Africa.

METHODS

Relevant articles were identified through a systematic review of PubMed, Web of Science (Thomson Reuters), and PsycINFO (EBSCO). Studies were selected for inclusion if they examined a quantitative measure of burnout among healthcare providers in sub-Saharan Africa.

RESULTS

A total of 65 articles met our inclusion criteria for this systematic review. Previous studies have examined burnout in sub-Saharan Africa among physicians (N = 12 articles), nurses (N = 26), combined populations of healthcare providers (N = 18), midwives (N = 2), and medical or nursing students (N = 7). The majority of studies assessed burnout using the Maslach Burnout Inventory. The highest levels of burnout were reported among nurses, although all healthcare providers showed high burnout. Burnout among healthcare providers is associated with their work environments, interpersonal and professional conflicts, emotional distress, and low social support.

CONCLUSIONS

Available studies on this topic are limited by several methodological challenges. More rigorously designed epidemiologic studies of burnout among healthcare providers are warranted. Health infrastructure improvements will eventually be essential, though difficult to achieve, in under-resourced settings. Programs aimed at raising awareness and coping with burnout symptoms through stress management and resilience enhancement trainings are also needed.

Self-Efficacy and Emotional Intelligence as Predictors of Perceived Stress in Nursing Professionals

Background: Nursing professionals face a variety of stressful situations daily, where the patients’ own stresses and the demands of their family members are the most important sources of such stress. Methods: The main objectives pursued were to describe the relationships of self-efficacy and emotional intelligence with perceived stress in a sample of nursing professionals. We also developed predictive models for each of the components of perceived stress based on the dimensions of emotional intelligence and self-efficacy, for the total sample, as well as samples differentiated by sex. This study sample consisted of 1777 nurses and was conducted using multiple scales: the perceived stress questionnaire, general self-efficacy scale, and the brief emotional intelligence survey for senior citizens. Results: The variables stress management, mood, adaptability, intrapersonal skills, and self-efficacy explained 22.7% of the variance in the harassment–social component, while these same variables explained 28.9% of the variance in the irritability–tension–fatigue dimension. The variables mood, stress management, self-efficacy, intrapersonal, and interpersonal explained 38.6% of the variance in the energy–joy component, of which the last variable offers the most explanatory capacity. Finally, the variables stress management, mood, interpersonal, self-efficacy and intrapersonal skills explained 27.2% of the variance in the fear–anxiety dimension. Conclusion: The results of this study suggest that one way to reduce stress in professionals would be to help them improve their emotional intelligence in programs (tailored to consider particularities of either sex) within the framework of nursing, enabling them to develop and acquire more effective stress coping strategies, which would alleviate distress and increase the wellbeing of health professionals.

The Role of Emotional Intelligence in Engagement in Nurses

Aware that engagement in the healthcare field needs high levels of emotional intelligence, we began this study to determine relationship between engagement and emotional intelligence in nurses. The objective of this study was to determine the explanatory value of the components of emotional intelligence for engagement in a sample of nurses. The final study sample was made up of 2126 working nursing professionals. Data was obtained by distributing, an ad hoc questionnaire was used to collect sociodemographic information, and to collect professional and employment information, the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale and the Reduced Emotional Intelligence Inventory for Adults were used. The results showed that nurses with higher levels of emotional intelligence also scored more highly in engagement, with the interpersonal factor being the greatest predictor of engagement. This study has significant practical implications for the creation of intervention programs and activities to improve the performance of nurses in the workplace.

The role of emotion in clinical decision making: an integrative literature review

BACKGROUND

Traditionally, clinical decision making has been perceived as a purely rational and cognitive process. Recently, a number of authors have linked emotional intelligence (EI) to clinical decision making (CDM) and calls have been made for an increased focus on EI skills for clinicians. The objective of this integrative literature review was to identify and synthesise the empirical evidence for a role of emotion in CDM.

METHODS

A systematic search of the bibliographic databases PubMed, PsychINFO, and CINAHL (EBSCO) was conducted to identify empirical studies of clinician populations. Search terms were focused to identify studies reporting clinician emotion OR clinician emotional intelligence OR emotional competence AND clinical decision making OR clinical reasoning.

RESULTS

Twenty three papers were retained for synthesis. These represented empirical work from qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-methods approaches and comprised work with a focus on experienced emotion and on skills associated with emotional intelligence. The studies examined nurses (10), physicians (7), occupational therapists (1), physiotherapists (1), mixed clinician samples (3), and unspecified infectious disease experts (1). We identified two main themes in the context of clinical decision making: the subjective experience of emotion; and, the application of emotion and cognition in CDM. Sub-themes under the subjective experience of emotion were: emotional response to contextual pressures; emotional responses to others; and, intentional exclusion of emotion from CDM. Under the application of emotion and cognition in CDM, sub-themes were: compassionate emotional labour - responsiveness to patient emotion within CDM; interdisciplinary tension regarding the significance and meaning of emotion in CDM; and, emotion and moral judgement.

CONCLUSIONS

Clinicians' experienced emotions can and do affect clinical decision making, although acknowledgement of that is far from universal. Importantly, this occurs in the in the absence of a clear theoretical framework and educational preparation may not reflect the importance of emotional competence to effective CDM.

Emotional intelligence increases over time: A longitudinal study of Australian pre-registration nursing students

BACKGROUND

Emotional intelligence (EI) has been associated with positive outcomes for nursing students. Higher EI is associated with personal wellbeing and stress management, higher academic performance, stronger nursing leadership and practice performance, and greater patient safety. While there is an increasing body of evidence on nursing students' EI, there is minimal evidence on EI over time during pre-registration programs.

OBJECTIVES

To measure EI in pre-registration nursing students from program commencement to conclusion to ascertain EI over time and examine the relationship between EI and academic performance.

DESIGN AND SETTING

Longitudinal repeated measures study between March 2010-February 2013 at a metropolitan university in Australia.

PARTICIPANTS

111 nursing students (74.8% female) contributed data on at least two occasions. Participants were enrolled in a pre-registration Master of Nursing degree. Half the cohort (55.0%) comprised Graduate Entry students who completed the course in two years full time. The other 45% were enrolled in an undergraduate degree in arts, science or health science, combined with the same pre-registration Master of Nursing Degree. These students completed their Combined Degree program in four years full time. Participants had a mean age of 24.7years (SD=7.36).

METHODS

EI was measured for commencing students (T1) using the Assessing Emotions Scale (AES), then a further three times: end of first year (T2; 9 months follow up); beginning of second year (12 months follow up; T3) and end of the program (T4; 24/36 months follow up).

RESULTS

Students' EI was found to increase across the program; one subscale of EI (managing others' emotions) was related to higher academic performance; and there was a significant increase in the Utilising Emotions subscale scores over time.

CONCLUSIONS

Pre-registration nurse education contributes to strengthening students' EI over time. Specific EI education scaffolded throughout programs is recommended in pre-registration curricula.

The role of emotional intelligence and organisational support on work stress of nurses in Ibadan, Nigeria

Background

Universally, nurses have been reported to be a group at high risk of workplace stress. However, nurses’ responses to stressful situations at work could be the outcomes of individual differences and organisational factors.

Objectives

We examined the independent and joint contributions of four dimensions of emotional intelligence and perceived organisational support in work stress of nurses in a teaching hospital in Nigeria.

Methods

The study was a cross-sectional survey research design, which selected 228 (41 male and 187 female nurses) nurses through the use of convenience sampling. Questionnaires comprising demographics with work stress, organisational support and emotional intelligence scales were administered to the sampled 228 nurses in the study. Data were analysed with the use of correlational matrix and hierarchical multiple regression.

Results

Self-emotion appraisal, others’ emotion appraisal, use of emotion, regulation of emotion and perceived organisational support were found to have joint contributions to explaining work stress among nurses. Others’ emotion appraisal, use of emotion and perceived organisational support were found to have independent relationships with work stress.

Conclusion

Our findings stress that judgement of others’ emotions, accurate use of emotion by nurses and support from management of the hospital are most important in explaining their reactions towards work-related stress.