Emotional regulation and control questionnaire: factore structure

Osnovni cilj rada bio je provjeriti faktorsku valjanost preliminarne verzije Upitnika emocionalne regulacije i kontrole (ERIK; Takšić, 1998; Takšić, 2000). Na razlićitim uzorcima ispitanika (podijeljenih prema spolu i obrazovanju) konfirmatornom faktorskom analizom testirani su razlićiti modeli o faktorskoj strukturi Upitnika: jednofaktorski, dvofaktorski i trofaktorski. Slaganje rezultata s teorijskim postavkama modela usporedilo se standardnim indeksima GFI i AGFI, a odstupanje od modela pomoću ć2, ć2/ df i RMSEA. Koristio se i kriterij po kojem bi pojedine dimenzije Upitnika morale imati zadovoljavajuće pouzdanosti (Cronbach ćć 0.70). U zakljućku provedenih analiza moguće je dati odrećene preporuke za korištenje Upitnika ERIK. Model s jednim faktorom uglavnom zadovoljava kriterije i ima relativno zadovoljavajuću unutrašnju konzistenciju. Najbolje indekse slaganja pokazao je model strukture s tri faktora, ali se jasno i kroz sve uzorke pokazao problem slabe pouzdanosti trećeg, ali i u većini uzoraka drugog faktora. Zbog toga se dobrim pokazao prijedlog strukture s dva faktora, nastao spajanjem prvog i trećeg faktora u jedan. Korištenje ove solucije naroćito se preporuća u uzorcima starijih ispitanika, gdje je pouzdanost oba faktora zadovoljavajuća. Oćito je da veće iskustvo doprinosi boljem razlikovanju odnosa prema vlastitim emocijama, kao i razlićitih emocionalnih reakcija. Potrebno bi bilo u budućnosti ispitati odnos Skale emocionalne regulacije i kontrole (ERIK) sa slićnim konstruktima, kao i mogućnosti prognoze realno postojećih kriterija, gdje bi se utvrdila opravdanost zadržavanja više dimenzija Upitnika.The aim of present study was to examine factor validity of the preliminary version of Emotional Regulation and Control Questionnaire (ERIK; Takši_, 1998; Takši_, 2000). Different models of factor structure of ERIK (one-, two-, or three-factors) were tested using confirmatory factor analysis in various samples, respecting the gender and educational level of participants. The congruency of the models with obtained data was compared using standard goodness-of-fit indexes (GFI and AGFI), and the difference was tested by _2, _2/ df and RMSEA. Also, satisfactory reliability of certain dimensions (factors) of the Questionnaire was used as a criterion (Cronbach __ 0.70). The results were shown as follows: a) one-factor model satisfies all the criteria, b) three-factor model has the best goodness-of-fit indexes, but the problem of weak reliability of the third factor emerged in every sample, and for the second factor in majority of the samples, c) suggestion to merge the first and the third factors (appeared in the two-factor model) seems promising, but only for more educated and maturated participants. The analysis of variance has shown that greater experience (and educational level) about one’s own emotions and emotional reactions brings better regulation and control over negative emotions, and allow better differentiation among dimensions (factors)

GUEST EDITORS\u27 NOTE

This thematic issue of the journal Psychological Topics is dedicated to emotional intelligence. Twenty-five years after the concept of emotional intelligence was introduced, it still captures the attention of scholars, practitioners, educators, and the public alike. Questions regarding how EI should be defined and measured, with different approaches both to theory and measurement, are still relevant. Emotional intelligence is usually analysed from two different perspectives – the ability models or mixed models. While the ability models focus on an individual\u27s mental abilities to apply information provided by emotions for the improvement of cognitive processing, mixed models conceptualize EI as the combination of mental abilities, stable behavioural traits and personality variables. This volume presents theoretical and empirical papers that address a variety of topics. Two review papers cover new and important themes: the mechanisms of emotional intelligence using a computational approach, and the question on how to transversely develop emotional intelligence through school subjects. Research papers investigate several topics: the relationships between measures of EI and transformational leadership; the effect of the implicit theories of EI and of ability and trait EI on students’ academic achievement; the relationship between perceived emotional intelligence, burnout, work engagement, and job satisfaction in Italian schoolteachers; the developmental changes in EI abilities during early adolescence; and the effects of short-term emotional intelligence training on preschool teachers. Four papers are dedicated to methodological themes: dealing with an ongoing problem of EI measurement, especially its cross-cultural effects: comparing differential item functioning procedure in traditional back translation of the questionnaire with the native translator version; measurement invariance of the Interpersonal and Intrapersonal Emotional Competence Questionnaire across five different countries (Slovenia, Russia, Croatia, India, and the Czech Republic); the psychometric properties of the Vocabulary of Emotions Test (VET) in Serbian context; construction and validation of the Emotional Skills and Competence Questionnaire – Children’s form (ESCQ-C). We hope that this special issue will broaden knowledge in this field and raise further questions about emotional intelligence construct. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to all the authors who contributed to this thematic issue, and to academic reviewers. We also thank editor-in-chief and editorial board for their support and assistance

THE IMPORTANCE OF EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE IN EXPLANATION OF PEER VIOLENCE PROBLEMS

Cilj ovoga istraživanja bio je ispitati potencijalne prediktore vršnjačkoga nasilja i vršnjačke viktimizacije. Uz kontrolu demografskih varijabli (rod, dob) cilj je bio provjeriti koliko dobro emocionalna inteligencija predviđa pojavu vršnjačkoga nasilje i vršnjačke viktimizacije. U tu su svrhu na uzorku od 176 učenika od petoga do osmoga razreda osnovne škole (51, 1 % dječaka i 48, 9 % djevojčica) primijenjeni Upitnik o nasilju među školskom djecom (UNŠD) i Upitnik emocionalne regulacije i kontrole (UERK). Najznačajnijim prediktorom vršnjačkoga nasilja pokazala se emocionalna inteligencija, a značajnim prediktorima pokazale su se i varijable broj braće i sestara, dob i rod. Emocionalna inteligencija, osjećaj odbačenosti od vršnjaka te broj braće i sestara pokazali su se podjednako važnima za objašnjenje vršnjačke viktimizacije

The structure of dimensions of mood

Raspoloženje se definira kao difuzno afektivno stanje koje se najčešće doživljava kao promjena u subjektivnom doživljaju. Obično je niskoga intenziteta i dužega trajanja (Russell, 2003). Iako postoji konsenzus među autorima kako se raspoloženje najbolje ispituje mjerama samoprocjene (O′Connor, 2004), nije postignut dogovor oko broja različitih dimenzija raspoloženja ili njihovih naziva. Dvodimenzionalne strukture raspoloženja naglašavaju postojanje dviju dimenzija prema kojima se organiziraju raspoloženja (Diener i Iran-Nejad, 1986; Russell i Carroll, 1999a; Watson i Tellegen, 1985), dok višefaktorski modeli nastoje identificirati nekoliko dimenzija ili klastera. Cilj je istraživanja bio provjeriti jačinu izvora varijabiliteta dimenzija ugoda/neugoda i aktivacija unutar konstrukta raspoloženja. Listu od 88 raspoloženja ispunilo je 276 studenata raznih odjela Sveučilišta u Zadru. Na listi su trebali označiti čestinu javljanja različitih raspoloženja u posljednjih nekoliko mjeseci. Faktorskom analizom podataka dobivene su dvije različite faktorske strukture raspoloženja u zavisnosti o tipu rotacije faktorskih osi. U početku analize (nerotirana struktura) izlučen je faktor ugoda/neugoda, a nakon njega faktor aktivacije. Nakon rotacije faktorskih osi u dvodimenzionalnom prostoru, raspoloženja se raspoređuju na dimenzijama ugode i neugode, a gubi se efekt dimenzije aktivacije. Rezultati su komentirani obzirom na dva kompetitivna modela raspoloženja: Watsonov i Tellegenov (1985) koji naglašava odvojenost i nezavisnost pozitivnih i negativnih raspoloženja, te Russellov i Carrollov (1995a), koji naglašava ortogonalnost i bipolarnost dviju dimenzija raspoloženja (hedonskog tona i aktivacije).Mood can be defined as a diffuse affective state, most frequently experienced as change in subjective status. It is usually low in intensity and longer in duration (Russell, 2003). Although there is consensus among authors that the best way to measure mood is by self-report measures (O′Connor, 2004), researchers still disagree on a number of different mood dimensions or their names. Dimensional mood models emphasize two dimensions on which to organize mood (Diener and Iran-Nejad, 1986; Russell and Carroll, 1999a; Watson and Tellegen, 1985), while multi-factorial models try to identify the several dimensions or clusters. The aim of the present research was to examine the source of variability in the dimensions pleasant/unpleasant and activation within the mood construct. A total sample of 276 students from different departments at the University of Zadar filled out a list containing 88 mood adjectives. Students had to mark how frequently they had experienced the different mood states in the past few months. A factor analysis of the given data revealed two different factor structures, depending on the given method of rotation. An unrotated factor analysis extracted two significant factors: pleasant/unpleasant and then activation. After rotation of the factor axis the mood adjectives are allocated into two dimensions (pleasant and unpleasant), while the effect of activation is diminished. The results are discussed in the light of two competitive mood models: the one proposed by Watson and Tellegen (1985) which emphasizes autonomy and independence of positive and negative affects, and a second proposed by Russell and Carroll (1995a) which emphasizes the orthogonality and bipolarity of two mood dimensions (valence and activation)

Support programmes for emotional and social competencies in children and adolescents

Posljednjih godina raste broj stručnjaka na polju školske psihologije koji, uz akademsko postignuće, naglašavaju važnost razvoja djetetovih socijalnih i emocionalnih vještina kroz školovanje. Rezultati istraživanja idu u prilog tvrdnjama da se socijalne i emocionalne kompetencije mogu naučiti kroz programe integrirane u školski kurikulum (tzv. socijalno i emocionalno učenje, SEU). Takvi programi čine se učinkovitim načinom za smanjenje problematičnih ponašanja učenika i emocionalnih teškoća, dok istovremeno povećavaju socijalnu prilagodbu i potiču akademski uspjeh učenika. Rad donosi opsežan pregled postojećih programa i nekoliko aspekata klasifikacije programa za socijalno i emocionalno učenje (SEU) nastalih i primjenjivanih u svijetu (primarno u američkim školama) u posljednjih 10-ak godina. Budući da je cilj privući interes i povećati razumijevanje stručnjaka s područja obrazovanja i psihologije u svrhu primjene sličnih programa u Hrvatskoj, u radu se kritički razmatraju uvjeti razvoja, primjene i evaluacije efekata SEU programa.During the last decade, a growing number of educational psychology experts, along with academic performance, stress the importance of developing the child\u27s social and emotional skills through schooling. Research indicates that social and emotional competencies can be learned through school-based curriculum activities (Social and Emotional Learning, SEL). Such programs seem to be an effective approach to reducing problem behaviors and emotional distress, while at the same time promoting positive social adjustment and enhancing the academic performance of students. This paper brings a broad overview of existing programs and represents an attempt to classify SEL programs implemented in different countries (primarily in American schools) in the last 10 years. Since the primary goal is to raise interest and increase understanding in experts from education and psychology in order to encourage implementation of such programs in Croatia, the paper gives a critical insight into the conditions in which SEL programs are developed, implemented and evaluated

Vocabulary of Emotions Test (VET): A Cross-cultural Validation in Portuguese and Croatian Contexts

This article discusses the adaptation and cross-cultural validation of the Vocabulary of Emotions Test (VET) in the Portuguese and Croatian contexts, an Emotional Intelligence ability measure with 35 items, which assesses individual\u27s ability to understand emotion. Based on Mayer and Salovey\u27s (1997) theoretical framework of emotional intelligence, VET was originally developed in Croatian academic settings by Takšić, Harambašić and Velemir (2003). This study involved 1119 secondary school students, 682 Portuguese and 437 Croatian, attending different grades and courses. Overall, in both Croatian (original version) and Portuguese (adapted version) contexts, VET evidenced good psychometric properties particularly concerning sensibility, difficulty item analysis and reliability, although slightly better indicators were found in the Croatian original version. Moreover, cultural and gender differences were found, benefiting Portuguese students and girls

THE IMPORTANCE OF EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE IN EXPLANATION OF PEER VIOLENCE PROBLEMS

Cilj ovoga istraživanja bio je ispitati potencijalne prediktore vršnjačkoga nasilja i vršnjačke viktimizacije. Uz kontrolu demografskih varijabli (rod, dob) cilj je bio provjeriti koliko dobro emocionalna inteligencija predviđa pojavu vršnjačkoga nasilje i vršnjačke viktimizacije. U tu su svrhu na uzorku od 176 učenika od petoga do osmoga razreda osnovne škole (51, 1 % dječaka i 48, 9 % djevojčica) primijenjeni Upitnik o nasilju među školskom djecom (UNŠD) i Upitnik emocionalne regulacije i kontrole (UERK). Najznačajnijim prediktorom vršnjačkoga nasilja pokazala se emocionalna inteligencija, a značajnim prediktorima pokazale su se i varijable broj braće i sestara, dob i rod. Emocionalna inteligencija, osjećaj odbačenosti od vršnjaka te broj braće i sestara pokazali su se podjednako važnima za objašnjenje vršnjačke viktimizacije