Emotional intelligence and motor competence in children, adolescents, and young adults. Issue 1 (2nd January 2023)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Mohammadi Orangi, Behzad; Lenoir, Matthieu; Yaali, Rasoul; Ghorbanzadeh, Behrouz; O'Brien-Smith, Jade; Galle, Julie; De Meester, An
• Is Part Of: European journal of developmental psychology. Volume 20:Issue 1(2023)
• Page Start: 66
• Page End: 85
• Publication Date: 2023-01-02
• Subjects: Motor proficiency -- motor skill -- age -- development; Developmental psychology -- Periodicals; Developmental psychology -- Europe -- Periodicals; 155
• DOI: 10.1080/17405629.2022.2034614
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1740-5629

Abstract

ABSTRACT: This study's purpose was to explore the relationship between emotional intelligence (EI) and motor competence (MC) in 540 children, adolescents, and young adults. Using the Schutte Self-Report Emotional Intelligence Scale (SSEIT), participants were divided in three groups of high, average, and low EI. The short form of Bruininks–Oseretsky Test for Motor Proficiency – 2 (BOTMP-2SF) evaluated MC. Within each age and sex group, associations between MC and a) EI as a global construct and b) the four subdomains of EI were overall significant (with p < .01 for 85 out of 90 correlations) and very strong (with 66 correlations > .60). A 3 (EI groups) x 3 (age groups) x 2 (sex) ANOVA on standardized overall MC scores revealed that in all age groups, participants with higher EI outperformed their peers with average and low EI with respect to MC (p < .001). Additionally, boys scored higher on MC tests compared to girls (p < .001). A third-order interaction effect (p < .001) revealed that boys' superiority in MC generally decreased from childhood to adulthood, especially in the low EI group. The outcomes of this study show a robust relationship between EI and MC from childhood through early adulthood, suggesting a novel MC correlate throughout the lifespan.