College Student Identity and Emotional Intelligence

College Student Identity and Emotional Intelligence Eugenia V. Purcar Dr. Don Thompson, Dr. Cindy Miller-Perrin Division of Natural Science; Pepperdine University

::Results:: Diffusion Mean

Foreclosure Mean

23.0000

Abstract This research examines the longitudinal relationship between identity and emotional intelligence development in undergraduate students. Using sample data collected from approximately 4000 undergraduate subjects who completed a 400 item survey during each of four college years, we examine the relationship between the Objective Measure of Ego Identity Status (OMEIS) and a number of Emotional Intelligence indicators, measured longitudinally.

22.0000

22.5000

21.5000

22.0000 21.5000

21.0000

21.0000

.825 Significance

20.5000

.’054 Significance

20.5000

20.0000

20.0000

19.5000 19.0000

19.5000

18.5000 female

male

female

Freshmen

19.0000

male

female

Juniors

male

female

Freshmen

male

Juniors

Moratorium Mean

Achievement Mean

25.0000 31.4000 24.5000 31.2000 24.0000

31.0000

23.5000

30.8000

23.0000

30.6000

.769 Significance

22.5000

.535 Significance

30.4000 30.2000

22.0000

Introduction The OMEIS is an instrument used to measure ego identity in an attempt to offer an alternative to a clinical overview. It assigns scores to four identity status scales: diffusion, foreclosure, moratorium, and achievement. The four status values are driven by two binary variables: exploration and commitment. Diffusion as one’s status describes one who has not explored nor made a commitment on his or her beliefs, values, roles, ideological alliances. Foreclosure is the next status, and refers to those have committed to various ideological beliefs but have not explored those beyond their own. The moratorium status applies to individuals who are in the midst of exploring, but have not yet formed their combination of ideologies, values, etc. Achievement deals with those who have investigated belief alternatives and have adopted their own as a result. The three categories that comprise emotional intelligence are: the appraisal and expression of emotion, the regulation of emotion, and the utilization of emotions in problem solving. These three categories refer to both the individual's strength in applying them to the self as well directing them towards others and can be both verbal and nonverbal. Acknowledgments Thank you to the Pepperdine Natural Science Department and Dr. Thompson for their support throughout this project.

Methods From 2010 to 2012, 3,824 responses were obtained to the OMEIS survey. Because we were primarily interested in longitudinal trends, we specified the data set to include only students who had taken the survey both their freshman and junior years. Thus the data is divided into two sets, freshman, or, “2010” and juniors, “2012.” This yielded a sample size of 112.

30.0000 21.5000

female

male

female

29.8000

male

29.6000

Freshmen

Juniors

female

male

female

Freshmen

Appraisal Mean

Juniors

.98 Significance

References

Utilization Mean

Regulation Mean

44.0000

male

Adams, Gerald R.The Objective Measure of Ego Identity Status: A Reference Manual. 1998. N. S. Schute et al. Development and Validation of a Measure of Emotional Intelligence, 1997. Personality and Individual Differences. 1998: 167-177. Miller-Perrin, Thompson. The Development of Vocational Calling, Identity, and Faith in College Students: A Preliminary Study of the Impact of Study Abroad. 2012; 13

30.0000

39.0000

.967 Significance

43.0000 38.0000

.535 Significance

29.0000

42.0000 37.0000

41.0000 40.0000

28.0000

36.0000

39.0000

27.0000

35.0000 26.0000

38.0000 34.0000 37.0000

25.0000

36.0000

33.0000

35.0000

32.0000

24.0000 female

male Freshmen

Total

female

male Juniors

Total

female female

male Freshmen

Total

female

male

Total

male Freshmen

Total

female

male

Total

Juniors

Juniors

Discussion Across the identity measures, there exist some noteworthy patterns. The data indicates that diffusion is higher in males than females and actually increases in both genders over time. In the results given by the foreclosure graph, there was a higher mean score for females which then decreased junior year, while the male mean score exhibited a reverse trend. In contrast, the moratorium measure revealed the exact opposite: male scores were higher freshman year, then decreased junior year with the female mean score exceeding the male score freshman year. The achievement score exhibited the same trend as diffusion, with male scores being consistently higher for each year. For appraisal and expression, regulation, and utilization the male score was consistently higher across all three measures for every year. While the first two categories’ charts indicate that the mean decreased between age group, at statistically significant levels, utilization surprisingly increased. This pattern is observed regardless of gender. (need a “conclusion” box, indicating what conclusions we are to draw from all of this. This might be a place to insert some correlation or regression results.)