Emotional Intelligence and the Relationship to Resident Performance

Abstract

T his study used a survey instrument to test the hypothesis that emotional intelligence, as measured by a BarOn emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i), a 125-item version personal inventory (EQ-i:125), correlates with resident overall performance. Five academic anesthesiology residency programs in the United States participated. The programs invited anesthesia residents in postgraduate years 2, 3, and 4 to participate by taking the EQ-i:125 online survey; resident privacy was ensured, and the programs did not have access to individual, identifiable scores. Despite this guarantee of confidentiality, the resident participation rate was only approximately 25%.After residents confidentially completed the BarOn EQi:125 personal inventory, the deidentified resident evaluations were sent to the principal investigator of a separate data collection study for data analysis. Data collected from the inventory were correlated with daily evaluations of the residents by residency program faculty. Results of the individual BarOn EQ-i:125 and daily faculty evaluations of the residents were tallied and analyzed.Univariate correlation analysis and multivariate canonical analysis showed that some aspects of the BarOn EQ-i:125 were significantly correlated with, and likely to be predictors of, resident performance. The investigators concluded that emotional intelligence, as measured by the BarOn EQ-i personal inventory, has substantial promise as an independent indicator of performance as an anesthesiology resident. COMMENTDespite the considerable resources that anesthesiology residency programs expend on selection of resident applicants, the customary parameters of resident selectionVwith their emphasis on cognitive abilityVhave been not only fallible, but disappointing. Indicators of future clinical success have proven elusive. Even the most competitive programs admit to selecting candidates whose overall clinical performance has been suboptimal. Repeated acceptance of applicants who disappoint suggests that intellect, although a necessary component of success, is neither the sole nor the primary predictor of resident performance. Indeed, personal and motivational qualifications appear to deserve more emphasis in the selection process. Emotional intelligence, considered to be an array of noncognitive skills that affect an individual's ability to cope with environmental demands and pressures, appears to deserve more emphasis than it has been accorded previously. However, noncognitive indicators are subjective and not easily validated.The current study clearly identified that patient care was the core Accreditation Council on Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) competency that was correlated with the most EQ-i:125 variables. In fact, 2 measured subscale metrics of emotional intelligence (self-regard and self-actualization) and total EQ score achieved statistically significant correlation with all 6 ACGME core competencies. Of interest is the fact that another subscale, impulse control, was not correlated with any of the 6 ACGME core comp...

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