La competencia emocional como predictora de la felicidad en trabajadores sociales / Emotional competence as a predictor of happiness in social workers

Resumen Los trabajadores sociales tienen unas elevadas exigencias laborales como consecuencia, entre otros factores, de la excesiva burocratización de las organizaciones de servicios sociales. Ante esta realidad, durante su proceso formativo, los estudiantes de trabajo social deben desarrollar competencias emocionales para hacer frente a estas demandas profesionales que pueden afectar a su bienestar y rendimiento laboral. Se realizó un estudio descriptivo y correlacional de corte transversal del que participaron 187 estudiantes del primer y segundo curso (n = 105 y n = 82, respectivamente) de Trabajo Social de la Universidad de Málaga (España). El 89.30 % eran mujeres y la edad promedio fue de 20.38 años (DT = 3.35). Se desarrolló un modelo de regresión lineal múltiple para evaluar el papel predictor de la inteligencia emocional (atención emocional, claridad emocional y reparación de las emociones) sobre la felicidad subjetiva percibida en estudiantes de trabajo social. La claridad emocional y la reparación de las emociones fueron predictores significativos positivos de la felicidad subjetiva, mientras que la atención emocional fue un predictor significativo negativo. Los estudiantes y futuros trabajadores sociales tienen que entender y manejar sus estados emocionales, de tal manera que les permita tanto afrontar sus propias frustraciones como constituirse en referentes de los usuarios para imponerse a sus dificultades. Se corrobora la necesidad de fomentar la inteligencia emocional entre los estudiantes y futuros trabajadores sociales, ya que esto constituye un factor de protección que puede aumentar su bienestar y concretamente, su felicidad subjetiva. Las experiencias de afecto negativas que sufren los trabajadores sociales demandan planes de estudio en los que se fomente la inteligencia emocional.

Abstract As a result of the excessive bureaucratization of social service organizations, among other factors, social workers have many job responsibilities (López & Chaparro, 2006; Montagud, 2016). Social workers suffer negative experiences and a high psychosocial risk which affect their well-being and work performance (i. e., emotional fatigue, job dissatisfaction, mental overload, burnout, decrease in happiness, ethical conflicts) (Bunce, Lonsdale, King, Childs, & Bennie, 2019; Caravaca, Carrión, & Pastor, 2018; Grootegoed & Smith, 2018; Prada-Ospina, 2019; Sabater, De Armas, & Cabezas, 2019; Urien, Díez, & Osca, 2019; Vallellano & Rubio-Valdehita, 2018). Given this reality, it is very important that Social Work students develop, during their training process, emotional competencies to cope with such professional demands (Bedoya-Gallego, Buitrago-Duque, & Vanegas-Arbeláez, 2019; Stanley & Bhuvaneswari, 2016). The characteristics of the job require knowledge of the mechanisms that influence the welfare of Social Work students in order to incorporate specific training strategies into teaching plans that prepare them to face the high work demands that can affect their welfare and performance (Blakemore & Agllias, 2019; Borrego-Alés, Vázquez-Aguado, & Orgambídez-Ramos, 2020; Fernández-Berrocal & Extremera, 2009). Despite the considerable shortage of research about the implications of emotional intelligence in the field of Social Work, emotional competence has proven to be essential to explain the personal well-being of students and social intervention professionals, characterized by a high burden of work and high rates of psychological distress and burnout (Bae et al., 2020; Esteban, 2014; Mikulic, Crespi, & Radusky, 2015). A descriptive and correlational cross-sectional study was carried out. 187 students of first (n = 105) and second year (n = 82) of the University of Malaga´s Social Work Degree (Spain) participated. 89.30 % of them was women and the average age was 20.38 years (SD = 3.35). A multiple linear regression model evaluated the predictive role of emotional intelligence (attention, clarity and emotional repair) on the subjective happiness perceived in Social Work students. Emotional clarity and emotional repair were significant positive predictors of subjective happiness, while emotional attention was a significant negative predictor. Of the three independent variables, emotional repair was positioned as the strongest predictor of the perception of subjective happiness. This fact corroborates that emotional repair is especially important to predict the levels of subjective happiness and life satisfaction of university students (Cejudo, López-Delgado, & Rubio, 2016; Extremera, Salguero, & Fernández-Berrocal, 2011). High levels of emotional repair are essential for proper psychological functioning and mental health. In this sense, people tend to develop pleasant activities that distract them and therefore contribute to their happiness (Guerra-Bustamante, León-del-Barco, Yuste-Tosina, López-Ramos, & Mendo-Lázaro, 2019). Individuals who can clearly identify their emotions and believe that they can repair their negative moods minimize the impact of stressful events and generate more positive emotions (Extremera et al., 2011). In social workers, emotions can be understood both as a dynamic resource, whose research can protect professionals and users, and as patterns of organizational and professional relationships, in which emotional states are constituted as phenomena that can be managed and controlled during professional practice (O'Connor, 2020). The need to foster emotional intelligence among students and future social workers is confirmed. It constitutes a protective factor that can increase their well-being and, specifically, their subjective happiness. The negative experiences of affection that social workers suffer demand curricula that promote emotional intelligence. The students and future social workers have to understand and manage their emotional states. It allows them both to face their own frustrations and to become referents for the users when they overcome their difficulties.

Social desirability in the measurement of subjective well-being: A study with Chilean university students / Deseabilidad social en la medición del bienestar subjetivo: un estudio con estudiantes universitarios de Chile

Abstract The present study aimed at determining the association between life satisfaction and subjective happiness while controlling for social desirability, and to explore whether overall satisfaction with life can be predicted by satisfaction with life dimensions while controlling for social desirability. The study had a quantitative, non-experimental cross-sectional design, with 279 participants from different universities of the Council of Rectors of Chile recruited through a non-probabilistic sampling method for convenience. The participants completed an online questionnaire that inquired about their global and dimensional satisfaction with life, subjective happiness, social desirability, and sociodemographic variables. The data was analysed using partial correlations and multiple regression analyses. Bivariate correlation results indicate weak and direct associations between social desirability and life satisfaction and subjective happiness, and a strong and direct association between the latter. According to the results of the partial correlation analysis, the association between life satisfaction and subjective happiness is maintained even when social convenience is controlled. The results of the multiple regression analyses indicate that although social desirability predicts life satisfaction by itself, when satisfaction with life dimensions is added to the model, social desirability loses its predictive power. In conclusion, although social desirability is associated with the two components, affective and cognitive, of subjective well-being, this association loses predictive power when other variables are considered in predictive models. Study limitations include a relatively low reliability score on the social desirability scale, possible bias due to the study's self-report design and sampling method used. The present study aimed at determining the association between life satisfaction and subjective happiness while controlling for social desirability, and to explore whether overall satisfaction with life can be predicted by satisfaction with life dimensions while controlling for social desirability. The study had a quantitative, non-experimental cross-sectional design, with 279 participants from different universities of the Council of Rectors of Chile recruited through a non-probabilistic sampling method for convenience. The participants completed an online questionnaire that inquired about their global and dimensional satisfaction with life, subjective happiness, social desirability, and sociodemographic variables. The data was analysed using partial correlations and multiple regression analyses. Bivariate correlation results indicate weak and direct associations between social desirability and life satisfaction and subjective happiness, and a strong and direct association between the latter. According to the results of the partial correlation analysis, the association between life satisfaction and subjective happiness is maintained even when social convenience is controlled. The results of the multiple regression analyses indicate that although social desirability predicts life satisfaction by itself, when satisfaction with life dimensions is added to the model, social desirability loses its predictive power. In conclusion, although social desirability is associated with the two components, affective and cognitive, of subjective well-being, this association loses predictive power when other variables are considered in predictive models. Study limitations include a relatively low reliability score on the social desirability scale, possible bias due to the study's self-report design and sampling method used.

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Happiness and health and food-related variables: Evidence for different age groups in Chile / Felicidad y variables relacionadas con la salud y los alimentos: evidencia para distintos grupos de edad en Chile

This study aimed to identify the factors determining the happiness in young and middleaged adults in Chile, including health and food-related factors, and their relationships between them. To achieve this objective, a survey was conducted on a total of 1163 people (from 20 to 65 years old), proportionally distributed in the cities over 100000 inhabitants in the central area of Chile. The main scales used were: Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS), Health Related Quality of Life Index (HRQoL), and Satisfaction with Food-related Life (SWFL). In this study, the logistic ordinal regression models were estimated. The mainfinding was that people have more unhealthy days, poorer perception of their health, and are less satisfied with their food-related life, and are less happy in both age groups. Therefore, health-related factors and SWFL are strong predictors of happiness.

En este estudio se identifican los determinantes de la felicidad en adultos jóvenes y personas de edad media en Chile, incluyendo factores relacionados con la salud y la alimentación, y las conexiones entre ellos. Un total de 1163 personas fueron entrevistadas (entre 20 y 65 años de edad), distribuidas proporcionalmente por las ciudades de más de 100000 habitantes de la zona central de Chile. Las principales escalas utilizadas fueron: Escala de Felicidad Subjetiva, Calidad de Vida Relacionada con la Salud, y Satisfacción con la Vida Relacionada con los Alimentos. En este estudio se estimaron modelos de regresión logística ordinal. El principal hallazgo es que las personas con más días no saludables, más pobre percepción de su estado de salud, y menos satisfechas con su vida relacionada con los alimentos, son menos felices en ambos grupos de edad. Esto significa que los factores relacionados con la salud y la satisfacción con la vida relacionada con los alimentos son fuertes predictores de la felicidad.

Validation and Psychometric Properties of the Brazilian Version of the Subjective Happiness Scale / Validación y propiedades psicométricas de la versión brasileña de la Escala de Felicidad Subjetiva

This paper aimed to adapt the Subjective Happiness Scale to Brazil and gather evidences of construct validity to the scale. Participants were 600 subjects (50% men), aged from 18 to 70 years old (M = 30.1; SD = 10.6). Sample was split to cross-validate the results. Exploratory factor analysis = 300) achieved a reliable single-factor solution, with all items loading satisfactorily on the factor. Confirmatory factor analysis = 300) corroborated the single-factor solution with excellent goodness-of-fit indexes. Evidences of convergent validity are also provided with three related constructs: self-esteem, life satisfaction and hope. The adapted scale showed strong evidences of validity and seems appropriate to evaluate subjective happiness on Brazilian adults.

El objetivo de este artículo fue adaptar la Escala de Felicidad Subjetiva para el Brasil y recolectar evidencias de validez de constructo para la escala. Los participantes fueron 600 sujetos (50 % hombres), con edades entre 18 y 70 años (M = 30.1; DE = 10.6). La muestra fue dividida para realizar la validación cruzada de los resultados. En el análisis factorial exploratorio ( N1 = 300) se encontró una solución unifactorial fiable, con todos los ítems presentando carga factorial satisfactoria en el factor. El análisis factorial confirmatorio ( N2 = 300) corroboró la solución unifactorial con adecuados índices de ajuste. Se presentan evidencias de validez convergente con tres constructos similares: autoestima, satisfacción con la vida y esperanza. La versión adaptada presentó fuertes evidencias de validez, siendo considerada apropiada para evaluar la felicidad subjetiva en adultos brasileños.

Propiedades Psicométricas de la escala de felicidad subjetiva en jóvenes y adultos de la ciudad de Córdoba - Argentina / Psychometric Properties of the subjective happiness scale among youths and adults from the city of Cordoba - Argentina

La Escala de Felicidad Subjetiva ha sido validada y aplicada en distintos países del mundo. Esta situación es contraria a lo que sucede en el contexto Latinoamericano. Ante ello, se procedió a la traducción de la escala original propuesta por Lyubomirsky y Lepper (1999) y se efectuaron dos estudios con el objetivo de evaluar las propiedades psicométricas del instrumento en muestras de jóvenes universitarios y adultos de 18 a 65 años de la ciudad de Córdoba (Argentina). En el estudio A se investigó la validez de constructo a través de análisis factorial exploratorio y confirmatorio. Además, se evaluó la correlación ítem total y la consistencia interna a través del alfa de Cronbach. En el estudio B se buscó obtener evidencia adicional sobre la estructura factorial y sobre la validez convergente/ discriminante en relación con la Escala de Afectividad Positiva y Negativa, además de examinarse la consistencia interna de la escala. En términos generales, los resultados evidenciaron una estructura unifactorial que explica el 57.38% de la varianza total, estructura que se replicó en análisis confirmatorios con ambas muestras. La consistencia interna fue aceptable en los dos estudios (coeficiente de alfa de Cronbach superior a .68). Asimismo, una mayor puntuación de felicidad subjetiva se relacionó significativamente y en sentido positivo con la afectividad positiva, y en sentido negativo con la afectividad negativa. Estos resultados indican que la escala posee adecuadas propiedades psicométricas, convirtiéndose así en una herramienta útil y confiable para continuar con el estudio de la felicidad.

The Subjective Happiness Scale has been validated and used around the world. However, this situation is not the same in the Latin-American context. For this reason, this study undertook to translate the original Scale developed by Lyubomirsky y Lepper (1999) and carried out two studies in order to examine the psychometric properties of the scale in samples of students and adults aged 18 to 65 from Cordoba (Argentina). Construct validity has been analyzed in study A using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. Furthermore, total-item correlation and internal consistency have been studied. Meanwhile, additional evidence was found in study B about the factorial structure and the convergent/discriminant validity in relation with the Positive and Negative Affective Scale. Moreover, internal consistency of the scale was also studied. In general terms, results indicate a unifactorial structure which explains 57.38% of the total variance, structure which has been replicated using confirmatory analysis in both samples. Internal consistency was acceptable in both studies (Cronbach's alpha above .68). In addition, higher scores of subjective happiness were positively and negatively related to positive affection and negative affection respectively. In conclusion, the results of these studies suggest that the scale is a valid and reliable measurement tool, allowing its continued use in future studies about subjective happiness.