Development and Psychometric Evaluation of a Tool for Assessing Emotional Intelligence in Teaching

Introduction: Emotional Intelligence (EI) has become a matter of great interest in teaching due to its positive effects on teaching-learning process, achievement in life, and improvement potential. Several instruments have been developed to measure individuals’ EI but none of them have been able to show to what extent a teacher uses EI in his teaching. This study was performed to develop an emotional intelligence measurement tool in teaching and evaluate its psychometric features. Methods: The preliminary questionnaire of 109 questions was developed based on literature review and determining emotional teaching factors. Content and face validity were confirmed by experts. The construct validity was confirmed by determining the correlation between the instrument and the Bar-On questionnaire among 30 randomly selected faculties. For factor analysis and data reduction also, 350 questionnaires were distributed among faculties in Isfahan University of Medical Sciences. Exploratory factor analysis was performed through principal components analysis. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics, correlation, and factor analysis. Results: 350 faculties received the questionnaire and 204 filled it out (response rate =58%). The designed questionnaire was correlated with Bar-On (p<0.001&r=0.714). Based on the results of factor analysis and negotiation with experts, the final questionnaire was prepared comprising 31 questions in 8 categories of “responding to learners’ feelings, motivation in teaching, communication with learners, responsibility towards learners, leading learners, sensitivity to learners’ social development, teaching abilities, and prompt reaction. Reliability coefficient of the questionnaire was 0.9 calculated through Cronbach’s alpha. Conclusion: This 31 item questionnaire seems to be a valid, reliable, and useful instrument to measure teachers’ emotional intelligence in teaching. Evaluation of the designed questionnaire in larger populations is recommended.