Module 5
Module 5
Thus, feelings are subjective experiences that frame our interpretation of emotion. Feelings are
subjective since there are based on our beliefs and past experiences. When we make a particular decision,
aside from using logic and reason in deliberating about our choice, we ask ourselves “how do I feel about
making this decision? Does it feel good? Does it feel right?”
Emotional Intelligence
For Bar-On (1997), “it is an array of non-cognitive abilities, competencies, and skills that influence
one’s ability to succeed in coping with environmental demands and pressures.”
According to Mayer, Salovey, and Caruso (2004), it is “the capacity to reason about emotion, and
of emotions to enhance thinking. It includes the abilities to accurately perceive emotions, to access and
generate emotions so as to assist thought, to understand emotions and emotional knowledge, and to
reflectively regulate emotions so as to promote emotional and intellectual growth”.
Goleman (2005), it is the “capacity for recognizing our own feelings and those of other, for
motivating ourselves, and for managing emotions effectively in ourselves and others.”
Meta-analytic Research has outlined ten (10) common strategies employed in emotional
regulation, namely, rumination, distraction, acceptance, problem solving, behavioral avoidance,
experiential avoidance, expressive suppression, reappraisal, mindfulness, and worry. However, employing
these strategies are dependent on a number of factors, including person characteristics, external stimuli,
specific emotional regulation goals, nature of the emotion to be regulated, long-term goals, and available
cognitive resources. Thus, emotional regulation varies from person to person, from context to context.
However, there are common characteristics shared by individual who have achieved emotional
maturity and efficacy. These individual manifest the following qualities that enable effective emotional
regulation:
1. Self-control. Managing disruptive impulses.
2. Trustworthiness. Maintaining standards of honesty and integrity.
3. Conscientiousness. Taking responsibility for one’s performance.
4. Adaptability. Handling change with flexibility.
5. Innovation. Being open to new ideas.
6. Empathy. Understanding other people and putting yourself in their shoes.