The correlation of emotional intelligence, academic achievement and clinical performance in undergraduate athletic training students

The purpose of this study was to determine if a relationship exists between emotional intelligence, as measured by the Bar-On Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i), academic achievement, as determined by cumulative grade point average (CGPA), and clinical performance as rated by athletic training educators. The subjects were 77 students currently enrolled as juniors or seniors (third or fourth year) in an undergraduate CAAHEP-approved athletic trainer education program. Correlation coefficients will be calculated to assess the degree of relationship among the variables of Bar-On EQ-i scores, clinical performance rating, and CGPA. A linear regression will be used to predict clinical performance rating from the predictor variables of CGPA and EQ-i scores. It was proposed that students who are more proficient in the emotional competencies regarded as "core" abilities for health care professionals, which include intrapersonal and interpersonal skills, adaptability, stress management, and general mood, as measured by the Bar-On EQ-i, will receive higher ratings of their clinical performance. The results of this study found no significant relationship between Bar-On EQ-i scores and clinical performance rating. Cumulative grade point average was found to have a moderate relationship to clinical performance rating.