Introduction
The term emotional intelligence (EI) was introduced by psychologists Salovey and Mayer in the early 1990s and brought to wider awareness by Daniel Goleman in his book Emotional Intelligence: Why It May Be More Important Than IQ? (Goleman, 1995). Based on their theory (Mayer, Salovey, 1990), several explanatory models of emotional intelligence were created (Mancini et al., 2022). Capability models, based on the concept of Salovey and Mayer, understand EI as the ability to perceive, recognize and regulate one's own and others' emotions, while evaluating it as a cognitive skill using performance tests. Conversely, trait models—such as those described by Petrides et al. (2007) - they consider emotional intelligence as a personality trait that manifests itself in the way of emotional perception and is evaluated through questionnaires. Mixed models, such as those proposed by Goleman (1995) and Bar-On (1997), integrate both approaches and understand EI as a combination of abilities and personality traits. Thus, emotional intelligence represents the ability to recognize, use and direct emotions in order to better understand their meaning and consequences (Al-Qadri, Zhao, 2021). Wiginton (2024) defines it as the ability to identify, understand and manage one's own emotions and the emotions of other people. Individuals with higher levels of EI tend to have more fulfilling relationships and better mental health. Unlike cognitive intelligence, which is relatively stable throughout life, emotional intelligence can develop over time (Dhliwayo, Coetzee, 2020).
The relationship between emotional intelligence and personal well-being
Personal well-being is closely related to happiness and life satisfaction. It occurs when a person has sufficient psychological, social and physical resources to cope with everyday challenges. However, if negative circumstances outweigh positive ones, personal well-being is weakened (Dodge et al., 2012). Marks and Shah (2004) divide personal well-being into two personal dimensions – life satisfaction and personal development – and one social dimension, which is a sense of belonging to a community. Davis (2024) describes it as a state of health, happiness and prosperity, including mental balance, high life satisfaction and the ability to manage stress. In a broader sense, personal well-being represents an overall state of mental and emotional balance. Research focused on the personal well-being of students shows that it is also influenced by the environment in which the student is. According to Tan and Lee (2022), students' personal well-being expresses their internal ability to cope with the difficulties associated with studying and adapt to the academic environment.
Maalouf, Hallit and Obeid (2022) state that emotional intelligence is a significant predictor of personal well-being, health and overall quality of life. This conclusion is also confirmed by other researches, for example Loon et al. (2019), who describe personal well-being as the development of human potential including self-acceptance, self-actualization, autonomy, positive relationships with others, and personal growth. Emotional intelligence is therefore considered a key element of personal and professional life, as it fundamentally affects people's ability to regulate behavior, solve complex social situations and make decisions leading to positive results (Maalouf, Hallit, Obeid, 2022). As pointed out by Guasp et al. (2020), emotional intelligence has a major impact on mental health, the quality of interpersonal relationships and the overall well-being of an individual.
Research methodology
The research conducted was descriptive, cross-sectional and quantitative in nature and focused on investigating the relationship between emotional intelligence and personal well-being, as well as assessing their level in university students.
Aim of the study
The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between emotional intelligence and personal well-being of university students. To identify which factors of emotional intelligence most significantly influence subjectively perceived well-being.
Research sample and methods used
The research group consisted of 82 university students with an average age of 22.7 years, while 76% of the participants were women. Students older than 18 years who studied at universities and expressed willingness to participate in the research were included in the study. The questionnaires were initially filled out by 107 students, but 25 of them, who had interrupted their studies, were excluded from the study. Data collection took place from December 2024 to April 2025. Questionnaires were distributed in person and electronically via email and online platforms.
As part of the research, proven psychodiagnostic methods were applied - specifically the WLEIS and IOP-PWI scales. To measure the emotional intelligence of university students, we used the WLEIS questionnaire (Wong & Law, 2002), which is designed to assess an individual's ability to work with emotions. This tool contains 16 statements that cover four basic areas of emotional intelligence: perception of own emotions, perception of emotions of others, use of emotions in decision-making, regulation of emotions. Research participants expressed their level of agreement with individual statements using a 7-point Likert scale, where 1 meant "strongly disagree" and 7 "strongly agree". A higher score indicated a higher level of emotional intelligence.
The Index of Personal Well-Being (IOP), developed by the International Wellbeing Group (2013), was used to determine the level of personal well-being of university students. This tool focuses on the cognitive dimension of well-being, namely the degree of satisfaction with various aspects of life. The questionnaire contains one separate question that assesses overall satisfaction with life and seven other items that address satisfaction with specific areas: standard of living, health status, goal achievement, interpersonal relationships, sense of security, community inclusion, and future perspective. Respondents express their satisfaction on an 11-point Likert scale from 0 (complete dissatisfaction) to 10 (complete satisfaction). The total IOP score is calculated as the average of seven or eight items, depending on the version of the questionnaire used. The resulting score can be transformed into a percentage scale from 0 to 100%, which allows for easier interpretation. The IOP is considered a reliable and validated instrument for measuring subjective well-being.
Mathematical and statistical processing
The obtained data were analyzed using software tools PSPP (version 25) and Microsoft Excel. As part of the descriptive analysis, we used frequency statistical methods, namely the calculation of absolute numbers (N) and percentage representation (%). To verify the relationships between variables, we applied bivariate analysis using a non-parametric statistical method - Spearman's correlation coefficient. The results were interpreted at the level of statistical significance α = 0.05, which represents the standard limit for assessing the significance of the relationships found.
Results
Determining the relationship between emotional intelligence and personal well-being of university students The table shows the relationships between individual components of emotional intelligence and the level of personal well-being. Personal well-being was found to be positively related to assessing one's own emotions (0.000), using them (0.000) and regulating them (0.003). Similar links are also shown between overall satisfaction with life and elements of emotional intelligence. These findings indicate that the ability to be aware of, use, and manage one's emotions contributes to higher levels of personal well-being.
Tab. 1 Assessments of the relationship between emotional intelligence and personal well-being
Discussion
When analyzing significant relationships, it was found that personal well-being is positively correlated with assessing one's own emotions (0.000), using them (0.000) and regulating them (0.003). Similar connections were also found between overall satisfaction with life and individual components of emotional intelligence. The results show that the ability to recognize, use and manage one's own emotions contributes to a higher level of personal well-being. Research conducted by Shuo and Xuyang (2022) on a sample of Chinese university students showed a strong positive correlation between emotional intelligence and personal well-being. Students with a high level of emotional intelligence were able to better understand their own and other people's emotions, which improved their communication skills and effectiveness in social interactions. These factors subsequently contributed to the improvement of their personal well-being in everyday life. Similar conclusions were drawn by the findings of Loi and Pryce (2022), who confirmed the positive influence of emotional intelligence on personal well-being. The authors emphasize that developing emotional intelligence in students can improve their overall well-being and at the same time act preventively against the negative consequences of academic burnout. Empirical evidence from several authors (Nag et al., 2023; Rany et al., 2024; Lye et al., 2023; Shengyao et al., 2024; Malayila et al., 2024) confirms the beneficial effect of emotional intelligence on the personal well-being of university students and points to its importance in reducing psychological burden.
Conclusion
The aim of the work was to examine the relationship between emotional intelligence and personal well-being of university students and to identify which factors of emotional intelligence most significantly affect subjectively perceived personal well-being. Based on the analyzed theoretical starting points and the results of our research, it can be concluded that this goal was fulfilled. Our findings show that there are significant positive correlations between individual factors of emotional intelligence and personal well-being. The strongest relationships were confirmed between personal well-being and assessment of one's own emotions, their use and regulation. These three factors have been shown to be key to maintaining mental balance, life satisfaction and overall psychological well-being. The mentioned theoretical knowledge points to the fact that emotional intelligence is an important factor influencing the personal well-being of an individual. The ability to recognize, understand and regulate one's own emotions, as well as to perceive the emotions of others, is a key factor in maintaining mental balance, satisfaction with life and contributes to overall psychological health. Many researches confirm that the development of emotional intelligence helps to better manage stressful and challenging situations, builds positive interpersonal relationships and thereby increases the quality of life. In the context of the student population, emotional intelligence has a particularly important meaning, because it helps to manage not only personal but also academic challenges, improves the adaptation process in the university environment and acts as a protective factor against the negative consequences of psychological stress and burnout. Developing emotional intelligence should be part of supporting personal growth and mental health, which would indirectly increase the level of personal well-being of individuals.
Author: PhDr. Valéria Parová, PhD. Pavel Jozef Šafárik University Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Nursing
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