2006 EI Institute - Abstracts

Preconference Certification Workshop. The certification workshop presents  the education-based model of emotional intelligence developed by Gary Low and Darwin Nelson.  This model evolved from research on personal and emotional skills that began in the mid-1970s. The Emotional Skills Assessment Process (ESAP) is a research-based model of emotional intelligence organized around key skills and competencies.  A positive and practical approach to human emotional behavior that students and educators can apply to improve achievement, career success, and personal health is described and illustrated.  Key research findings from doctoral dissertations, institutional research, and other projects will be shared.  The importance of emotional intelligence to college success, career development, organizational effectiveness, and leadership is emphasized. Needed directions fro EI research and applications is also outlined.

Emotional Intelligence & Constructive Thinking. The presentation will explore the relationship of emotional intelligence skills and constructive thinking patterns.  The Constructive Thinking Inventory (CTI) and the Emotional Skills Assessment Process (ESAP) will be emphasized to clarify the emotional intelligence theories of Seymour Epstein and Nelson and Low.  The correlations of emotional intelligence skills and constructive thinking patterns will be discussed, and suggestions for additional research to quantify emotional intelligence will be offered. 

EI vs IE: Galveston College’s use of EI in their QEP, Achieving the Dream, and Institutional Effectiveness Initiatives.  The presentation will provide an introductory roadmap of how Galveston College uses the Emotional Skills Assessment Process (ESAP) throughout the college.  A breakdown of the ESAP scores are used for “Keys to Student Success,” Galveston College’s Quality Enhancement Plan.  Discover how ESAP links Achieving the Dream initiatives and student success seminars. 

How to Adapt to Changing Times and Keep Your Work Fresh and How to Build Positive Relationships. The connection between two divergent settings to drive home important elements about initiating and sustaining change are used in Fish! Sticks through entertaining ‘story’ venue.  Through three simple concepts, people can handle new changes, create and maintain interest in current situations, and learn to embrace vision moments through: (1)   Commit, (2)   Be it (3)   Coach it.  Especially important are key implications for change managers, especially for the time period after change initiatives occur. Through the short film, power point, and instruction, key concepts like vision, internalization, coaching, commitment, and taking action will be realized.  Finally, guiding principles will help others as they grapple with finding their own trails instead of walking on well-worn ones that others have followed.

Listening and Emotional Intelligence: Tools for a Healthy Relationship with Self and Others. While it seems reasonable that before one can communicate well with others, one must communicate effectively with self.  Although intrapersonal listening is not a novel concept, combining intrapersonal listening, interpersonal listening, and emotional intelligence is cutting edge, particularly when investigating human relationships.  From research findings collected throughout twenty or more years, program presenters synthesize their findings into a model explaining how listening and emotional intelligence function to impact self-esteem and the quality of interpersonal/intercultural relationships.

A Factor Analysis of Six Dimensions of Emotional Skills Assessment Process (ESAP) for College Students. Nelson and Low (1999, 2003) developed the Emotional Skills Assessment Process (ESAP) for use with college students. This study used a revised form of the ESAP with 104 items that measured the five emotional skills and one problem indicator. The emotional skills were Assertion, Drive Strength, Time Management, Commitment Ethic, and Stress Management, as well as the problem area of Change Orientation. Data were collected using the Internet using colleges students from a medium sized Mid-South university (N=458). Using factor analysis, the goal of the study was to determine whether or not there were more than one factors within each of the 6 sub-scales of the ESAP. The results indicted numerous factors in all five of the emotional skills subscales while the Change Orientation produced only a single factor. For example, a factor analysis of the 18 item Assertion scale using varimax rotation produced 5 sub-factors with eigenvalues of more than one that explained 57.45% of the variance. A similar factor analysis of the 25 item Drive Strength scale produced 4 sub-factors that explained 45.22% of the variance. The factor analysis of each of the remaining sub-scales will be reported. The results of this indicate that each of the emotional skills of the ESAP can used to measure several aspects of emotional skills and further research needs to be conducted on the psychometric structure of the ESAP.

Cross-cultural perspectives for advanced ESL learners. Current researchers very much support the implications of literature in foreign language classrooms as a source to recognize cross-culture issues. However, readers can only capture and interpret historically or culturally different texts from limited points of view. The purpose of the presentation is to focus on emotionality in American literature as a cross-cultural issue to compare and contrast by Chinese readers. The selection of Young Goodman Brown by Nathaniel Hawthorne and Beloved by Toni Morrison as course materials for advanced ESL students in Chinese societies aims to demonstrate differences and similarities of emotional displays depicted in multicultural literary works as mirrors of lives in American culture.

Enhancing Success through Expanding Emotional Intelligence Perspectives.  According to Phillip Schlechty (2002), the highest quality learning takes place when training provides “authentic engagement” for the student. Providing learning environments with multiple opportunities for authentic engagement is what expanding EI perspectives is all about. By incorporating multiple theories and strategies from other areas to construct a new framework for training, it is possible to achieve genuine, wide-spread engagement to make learning EI fun and meaningful for clients.  

EI from Diverse Perspectives. A panel of three individuals including a student, a faculty member and an administrator will provide attendees with their individual perspective on the use of emotional intelligence in English 1301 classes. The student perspective will focus their experience with the workbook and related assignments used. The faculty member’s perspective will focus on its utility and ability to integrate it into the course curriculum as well as their observation of students’ response.  The administrator’s perspective will focus on support needed to maintain oversight of the activities and processes. In all cases the perspective will include both the pluses and delta’s as experienced by each.

The Impact of an Emotional Intelligence Intervention Program on Freshmen at a South Texas Higher Education Institution.  The study examined the impact of a campus wide Emotional Intelligence intervention program on freshmen students at a South Texas institution of higher education. The design of the current study was comparative with the major interest being the impact of an intervention program as measured by a pre-test and post-test. Data for the study were collected using the Emotional Skills Assessment Process (ESAP); a validated and normed assessment instrument. The study was a mixed-method approach that utilized qualitative and quantitative data. The sample for the study included 310 freshmen students at a South Texas institution of higher education.

Preservice, Student Teachers, and Veteran Teachers: Emotional Intelligence Profiles. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Texas will need over 82,000 new teachers by 2008. They project that teaching will be one of the fastest growing occupations over the next 5-10 years. (SBEC, 2004). On the other hand, many teachers are leaving the profession within 5 years of being employed. There appears to be a revolving door. The reason most often cited as a major factor for leaving is the lack of support or help for students from parents. Other factors can possibly be cited, but a factor that cannot be discounted is the emotional stability of novice and veteran teachers.

Exposure to Emotional Intelligence Assists Student Success. Galveston College integrates emotional intelligence within English curriculum and composition courses as part of the QEP, “Keys for Student Success”.  The Enrollment Management and Student Success Division also introduce EI to students outside of the classroom setting, giving many students multiple exposures to concept of emotional intelligence. Participants will learn the various methods used to disseminate and incorporate information on Emotional Intelligence in programs at Galveston College outside the classroom.  

Emotional Intelligence, Personal, and Professional Development: A Model Program at Wilkes University.  This presentation will review a model of an emotional intelligence based personal and professional growth program at Wilkes University and the results of a survey of the first year student participants. In 2004, the Jay S. Sidhu School of Business and Leadership began an emotional intelligence educational program titled the Personal and Professional Development (PPD). It is funded by a multi-million dollar, multi-year grant from a financial institution. PPDP is required for all new students majoring in Business Administration, Accounting, and Entrepreneurship. PPDP is composed of seven undergraduate classes that include self assessment, personal effectiveness training, leadership and team building experiences. Assessment tools given to students include the MSCEIT, MBTI, Six Seconds’ Emotional Intelligence Inventory, and the Kolb’s Learning Style. The results of these instruments are used to develop an individualized growth plan for each student. The plan is shared in a private session with the PPD director and reviewed periodically to determine whether or not the student has achieved the goals established in the plan development session. At the end of the first year, 85% of program participants reported they better understood themselves and had more knowledge of what areas they needed to improve in the future. The overall design of the PPD will be discussed and results of the evaluation of the first year of experience will be discussed with a focus on student retention and academic success. This program has the potential to be replicated in numerous higher education settings across the nation.

Emotional IQ in Executive Coaching.  The session will focus on the application of using emotional IQ in the workplace through executive coaching session.  Actual client vignettes will be presented from this viewpoint. Strategies for the successful application of emotional IQ will be discussed along with practical use of coaching forms.

The Importance of Interacting with Others Using Emotional intelligence.  Emotional Intelligence is a measure of how successful we are at interacting with others, including how well we are able to manage our own emotions, especially during times of stress. Bob Scott provides a unique and humorous look at how out of control emotions can make smart people look stupid.