Validez convergente y discriminante del Inventario de Cociente Emocional (EQ-i) / Convergent and discriminant validaty of Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i)

RESUMEN

Desde la aparición del constructo de inteligencia emocional (Salovey & Mayer, 1990) el campo de las habilidades emocionales se ha ido ampliando notablemente, debido a la aparición de diferentes conceptualizaciones, teorías e instrumentos de medición. Los desarrollos actuales se han centrado en el estudio de la validez de las pruebas utilizadas para medir la inteligencia emocional. El objetivo de la investigación que se informa fue estudiar la validez convergente y discriminante del Inventario de Cociente Emocional (EQ-i) de Bar-On (1997a, 1997b) en una muestra argentina de 100 personas adultas. Los instrumentos aplicados fueron el EQ-i, el Inventario Revisado de Personalidad NEO (NEO PI-R) de Costa y McCrae (1992) y la Prueba de Inteligencia o de Razonamiento Verbal (RV) de Bennett, Seashore y Wesman (1992). Para analizar los datos se realizaron correlaciones entre el EQ-i, el NEO PI-R y RV y regresiones múltiples por pasos sucesivos entre los factores de personalidad del NEO PI-R y las escalas de inteligencia emocional del EQ-i. Los resultados obtenidos revelaron correlaciones muy bajas entre el EQ-i e inteligencia verbal (RV) (r = .07 a .27); en cambio se observaron correlaciones significativas entre el EQ-i y los factores de la personalidad, especialmente entre el factor neuroticismo y el EQ-i (r = -.66 a - .72). Asimismo, se observó que los cinco factores del NEO PI-R predicen significativamente al EQ-i, siendo el factor Neuroticismo el que más contribuye en la predicción del EQ-i. De acuerdo a la muestra estudiada se concluye que el EQ-i mide atributos que tienden a solaparse con los rasgos de personalidad.

ABSTRACT

In the last few years, the emotional intelligence construct, defined by Salovey and Mayer (1990) as a domain of abilities specifically linked to the perception and utilization of emotions, has been the main core of different researches which have made an effort to measure and study this construct, yet there is no consensus regarding its definition and model. Integrating the theories existing up to this moment, Mayer, Salovey, and Caruso (2000) suggested that it is possible to distinguish between models based on ability (Mayer, Di Paolo & Salovey, 1990; Mayer & Salovey, 1997), and models based on features or mixed models (Goleman, 1996, 1999; Bar-On, 1997a, 1997b). Models founded on ability are based in the original conceptualization of emotional intelligence as defined by Salovey and Mayer (1990), which is characterized as a set of the abilities to perceive, understand and regulate emotions, and which are evaluated by means of tasks or tests of performance. On the other hand, mixed models, or based on features of emotional intelligence, are those which consider that abilities are associated to the processing and the use of emotions, combining those abilities with a wide variety of personality aspects, and which are evaluated by means of self-report measures. Bearing in mind that the approach used when measuring emotional intelligence could influence the validity of the construct, the latest developments have been focused in the study of psychometric properties of the tests. Specifically, most of the current research on this topic is centered in the study of what the test measures, in the most adequate methods used to measure emotional intelligence and whether the tests may be differentiated from other tests that measure abilities and personality aspects (Brackett & Mayer, 2003; Chapman & Hayslip, 2005; Palmer, 2003). Taking into account previous research which took place in other countries, the objective of this paper was to study the convergent and discriminant validity of an emotional intelligence self-report test, the Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i), which is based in Bar-On's mixed or feature model (1997a; 1997b), in an Argentinean sample of 100 adults between 25 and 50 years old of both sexes. Tests administered were EQ-i, the Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO PI-R) by Costa and McCrae (1992), and the Test of Verbal Intelligence or Reasoning (RV) by Bennet, Seashore and Wesman (1992). Correlations among EQ-i, NEO PI-R and RV and multiple stepwise regressions between NEO PI-R personality factors and EQ-i emotional intelligence scales were carried out in order to study the convergent and discriminant validity of the test. The results obtained showed very low correlations between EQ-i and verbal intelligence (r = .07 to .27). On the contrary, significant correlations were observed between EQ-i and personality factors, especially between the neuroticism factor and EQ-i (r = -.66 to -.72). Likewise, results showed that the five NEO PI-R factors contributed significantly to the prediction of EQ-i, being neuroticism the factor which contributed the most in the prediction of EQ-i. According to the results observed in the sample studied, we can conclude that the Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i) measures personality related attributes more likely than intelligence related attributes. The results attained in this study provide further support on the matter that EQ-i is not easily distinguished from the NEO PI-R. Indeed, they are similar to the findings of other studies which have taken place in different countries regarding the validity of the emotional intelligence construct.