The Relationship between Emotional Intelligence and Non-cognitive Factors in Dental Students

Volume 9, Issue 1, February 2024     |     PP. 274-289      |     PDF (334 K)    |     Pub. Date: August 12, 2021
DOI: 10.54647/cm32558    100 Downloads     1790 Views  

Author(s)

Natalie Wen, Natalie L. Wen, B.A., DMD candidate, Class of 2022, Harvard School of Dental Medicine
Muath Aldosari, Muath A. Aldosari, BDS, MPH, DMSc, Assistant Professor at the Department of Periodontics and Community Dentistry, College of Dentistry, King Saud University, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Lecturer at the Department of Oral Health Policy and Epidemiology, Harvard School of Dental Medicine, Boston, MA, United States of America
Sang E. Park, Sang E. Park, DDS, MMSc, Associate Dean for Dental Education, Office of Dental Education, Harvard School of Dental Medicine

Abstract
The aim of the study was to evaluate the association between emotional intelligence (EI) and the non-cognitive components of student data, such as age, gender, gap year prior to starting dental school, and number of adversities experienced in life. A validated EI questionnaire was sent to the dental students from the graduation classes of 2021 through 2024 in the predoctoral program at Harvard School of Dental Medicine (HSDM). Self-reported demographic and non-cognitive student data on age, gender, and number of gap years, and whether the student experienced adversities in life were obtained. Bivariate analyses were performed to evaluate associations between self-reported EI score and the non-cognitive student data. Seventy (48.6%) DMD students consented to filling out a self-rated EI survey; 64.3% of them were females. Age was found to be statistically associated (p < 0.05) with social awareness score. Male gender was found to be statistically associated with relationship management score. No statistical association was found between total EI score and age, gender, nor number of gap year. Interestingly, the strongest correlation was found between EI score and gap year (r= 0.12). Additionally, students age 26 and above reported higher EI scores compared to younger students. Non-cognitive student factors, such as age, gender, gap year, and life adversities, did not show statistically significant correlation in relation to emotional intelligence in the cohort of the study. These results suggest that although the non-cognitive student data can serve as an important resource in student selection and performance, further studies are needed to better understand their association with the level of emotional intelligence.

Keywords
Emotional intelligence, Admissions, Predoctoral dental program, Non-cognitive student data

Cite this paper
Natalie Wen, Muath Aldosari, Sang E. Park, The Relationship between Emotional Intelligence and Non-cognitive Factors in Dental Students , SCIREA Journal of Clinical Medicine. Volume 9, Issue 1, February 2024 | PP. 274-289. 10.54647/cm32558

References

[ 1 ] Law KS, Wong C-S, Song LJ. The construct and criterion validity of emotional intelligence and its potential utility for management studies. J Appl Psych. 2004;89(3):483-49
[ 2 ] Wong C-S, Law KS. The effects of leader and follower emotional intelligence on performance and attitude: An exploratory study. The Leadership Quarterly. 2002;13(3):243-274.
[ 3 ] Petrides K, Furnham A.  Trait emotional intelligence: psychometric investigation with reference to established trait taxonomies.  Eur J Pers. 2001;15:425-448.
[ 4 ] Salovey P, Mayer JD.  Emotional intelligence. Imagin Cogn Pers. 1990;9(3):185-211.
[ 5 ] Goleman, Daniel & Boyatzis, Richard & McKee, Annie. (2002). Primal Leadership: Realizing the Power of Emotional Intelligence.
[ 6 ] Willoughby E, Boutwell BB. Importance of intelligence and emotional intelligence for physicians. JAMA. 2018 Jul 10;320(2):205.
[ 7 ] Munk LK. Implications of state dental board disciplinary actions for teaching dental students about emotional intelligence. J Dent Educ. 2016 Jan;80(1):14-22.
[ 8 ] Shouhed D, Beni C, Manguso N, IsHak WW, Gewertz BL. Association of emotional intelligence with malpractice claims: A Review. JAMA Surg. 2019 Mar 1;154(3):250-256.
[ 9 ] Victoroff KZ, Boyatzis RE. What is the relationship between emotional intelligence and dental student clinical performance? J Dent Educ. 2013 Apr;77(4):416-26.
[ 10 ] Price MD, Park SE. Can noncognitive components of admissions data predict dental student performance and postdoctoral program placement? J Dent Educ. 2018 Oct;82(10):1051-1058.
[ 11 ] Grewal D, Davidson HA. Emotional intelligence and graduate medical education. JAMA. 2008 Sep 10;300(10):1200-2.
[ 12 ] Gardner AK, Dunkin BJ. Evaluation of validity evidence for personality, emotional intelligence, and situational judgment tests to identify successful residents. JAMA Surg. 2018 May 1;153(5):409-416.
[ 13 ] Dugan JW, Weatherly RA, Girod DA, Barber CE, Tsue TT. A longitudinal study of emotional intelligence training for otolaryngology residents and faculty. JAMA Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2014 Aug;140(8):720-6.
[ 14 ] Ng KM, Wang C, Zalaquett CP et al. A confirmatory factor analysis of the Wong and Law Emotional Intelligence Scale in a sample of international college students. Int J Adv Counselling. 2007 Oct 16;173(29).
[ 15 ] Emotional Intelligence Consortium - Emotional Competence Framework. At: http://www.eiconsortium.org/reports/emotional_competence_framework.html Accessed: January 9, 2021.
[ 16 ] Goleman D. Working with Emotional Intelligence. New York: Bantam Dell, 1998.
[ 17 ] Partido, BB, Stefanik, D. Impact of emotional intelligence training in a communication and ethics course among second‐year dental students. J Dent Educ. 2020;84:704–711.
[ 18 ] Farah-Franco S, Singer-Chang G, Deoghare H. Advancing the measurement of dental students' professionalism. J Dent Educ. 2017 Nov;81(11):1338-1344.
[ 19 ] Virtue SM, Pendergast L, Tellez M, Waldron E, Ismail A. Identifying noncognitive skills that contribute to dental students' success: dental faculty perspectives. J Dent Educ. 2017 Mar;81(3):300-309.
[ 20 ] Bajwa NM, Yudkowsky R, Belli D, Vu NV, Park YS. Improving the residency admissions process by integrating a professionalism assessment: a validity and feasibility study. Adv Health Sci Educ Theory Pract. 2017 Mar;22(1):69-89.
[ 21 ] Slapar F, Cook BJ, Stewart D, Valachovic RW. U.S. dental school applicants and enrollees, 2017 entering class. J Dent Educ. 2018 Nov;82(11):1228-1238.
[ 22 ] DeSantis LL, Ghoneima A, John V, Eckert G, Stewart KT. Preliminary performance of the Advanced Dental Admission Test (ADAT): association between ADAT scores and other variables for applicants to residency programs at a U.S. dental school. J Dent Educ. 2018 Dec;82(12):1327-1334.
[ 23 ] Gallagher JE, Niven V, Donaldson N, Wilson NH. Widening access? Characteristics of applicants to medical and dental schools, compared with UCAS. Br Dent J. 2009 Nov 14;207(9):433-45.
[ 24 ] Partido BB, Stafford R. Association Between Emotional Intelligence and Academic Performance Among Dental Hygiene Students. J Dent Educ. 2018 Sep;82(9):974-979. doi: 10.21815/JDE.018.094. PMID: 30173194.
[ 25 ] Guang SA, Eltorai AEM, Durand WM, Daniels AH. Medical student burnout: Impact of the gap year in burnout prevention. Work. 2020;66(3):611-616.
[ 26 ] Sidiqi B, Gillespie EF, Wang C, Dawson M, Wu AJ. Mind the gap: an analysis of "gap year" prevalence, productivity, and perspectives among radiation oncology residency applicants. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2019 Jun 1;104(2):456-462.
[ 27 ] Schripsema NR, van Trigt AM, Borleffs JCC, Cohen-Schotanus J. Impact of vocational interests, previous academic experience, gender and age on Situational Judgement Test performance. Adv Health Sci Educ Theory Pract. 2017 May;22(2):521-532.
[ 28 ] Henderson MC, Kelly CJ, Griffin E, Hall TR, Jerant A, Peterson EM, Rainwater JA, Sousa FJ, Wofsy D, Franks P. Medical school applicant characteristics associated with performance in Multiple Mini-Interviews versus traditional interviews: A Multi-Institutional Study. Acad Med. 2018 Jul;93(7):1029-1034.
[ 29 ] Harris JA, Herzog C, Terán VG, Seymour B. The true cost of applying to dental school: Diversity in the dental profession. J Dent Educ. 2020;84:1330–1333. 
[ 30 ] Quas JA, Dickerson KL, Matthew R, Harron C, Quas CM. Adversity, emotion recognition, and empathic concern in high-risk youth. PLoS One. 2017 Jul 24;12(7):e0181606.
[ 31 ] Russo-Netzer P, Moran G. Positive growth from adversity and beyond: Insights gained from cross-examination of clinical and nonclinical samples. Am J Orthopsychiatry. 2018;88(1):59-68.
[ 32 ] Ballard RW, Hagan JL, Cheramie T. Relationship between hand-skill exercises and other admissions criteria and students' performance in dental school. J Dent Educ. 2015 May;79(5):557-62.
[ 33 ] Hannah A, Lim BT, Ayers KM. Emotional intelligence and clinical interview performance of dental students. J Dent Educ. 2009 Sep;73(9):1107-17.