Association between Emotional Intelligence and Perceived Stress in Undergraduate Dental Students
- Author:
Norkhafizah Saddki
;
Noraini Sukerman
;
Dasmawati Mohamad
- Publication Type:Journal Article
- Keywords:
emotional intelligence, stress, students, dental
- From:Malaysian Journal of Medical Sciences
2017;24(1):59-68
- CountryMalaysia
- Language:English
-
Abstract:
Background: This study investigated the association of emotional intelligence (EI) and
other factors with perceived stress (PS) in undergraduate dental students.
Methods: A total of 234 undergraduate dental students at the School of Dental Sciences,
Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), in the academic year of 2009/2010, participated in this crosssectional
study. Self-administered questionnaires, the Assessing Emotions Scale and the
Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10), were used to evaluate EI and PS, respectively.
Results: The mean EI score was 121.2 (SD 11.85). The scores were significantly higher in
females than males, and in students who chose dentistry based on their own interest rather than
in those who were motivated by others to study dentistry. The mean PSS-10 score was 21.2 (SD
5.08). Pearson correlation analysis indicated a significant inverse relationship between EI and
PSS-10 scores (r = -0.337). Multi-variable regression analysis also indicated a significant negative
linear association between EI and PSS-10 scores (b = -0.156, 95% CI: -0.207, -0.104). PSS-10 scores
were significantly higher for students who were in the clinical years rather than the preclinical
years.
Conclusions: This study of USM undergraduate dental students shows that a low EI,
female sex, and being in the clinical years were significant predictors of PS.
- Full text:P020170313572011943428.pdf
