Social Anxiety, Emotional Intelligence, and Interpersonal Adjustment

Authors: Summerfeldt, Laura¹; Kloosterman, Patricia²; Antony, Martin³; Parker, James²

Source: Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, Volume 28, Number 1, March 2006 , pp. 57-68(12)

Publisher: Springer

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Abstract:

There has been no published investigation made of the relationship between social anxiety and emotional intelligence (EI), or of their shared impact upon interpersonal adjustment. This study examined these questions using structural equation modeling with self-report data from a large nonclinical sample (N = 2629). EI was found to be highly related to social interaction anxiety, but not performance anxiety. A model permitting these three predictors to inter-correlate indicated that the EI factor was the dominant predictor of interpersonal adjustment, substantially reducing the unique contribution made by interaction anxiety. This pattern reflected the principal contributions made to interaction anxiety by the interpersonal and, particularly, intrapersonal domains of EI.

Keywords: social anxiety; emotional intelligence; adjustment

Document Type: Research article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10862-006-4542-1

Affiliations: 1: Department of Psychology, Trent University, Peterborough, Ontario, Canada, Email: lsummerfeldt@trentu.ca 2: Department of Psychology, Trent University, Peterborough, Ontario, Canada, 3: Anxiety Treatment and Research Centre, St. Joseph’s Healthcare, and Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, McMaster University, Ontario, Canada,

Publication date: 2006-03-01