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Emotional intelligence in medical education: a critical review
Author(s) -
Cherry M Gemma,
Fletcher Ian,
O'Sullivan Helen,
Dornan Tim
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
medical education
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.776
H-Index - 138
eISSN - 1365-2923
pISSN - 0308-0110
DOI - 10.1111/medu.12406
Subject(s) - emotional intelligence , curriculum , set (abstract data type) , context (archaeology) , construct (python library) , medical education , psychology , health care , value (mathematics) , medicine , applied psychology , social psychology , pedagogy , machine learning , computer science , economics , programming language , economic growth , paleontology , biology
Context Emotional intelligence ( EI ) is a term used to describe people's awareness of, and ability to respond to, emotions in themselves and other people. There is increasing research evidence that doctors’ EI influences their ability to deliver safe and compassionate health care, a particularly pertinent issue in the current health care climate. Objectives This review set out to examine the value of EI as a theoretical platform on which to base selection for medicine, communication skills education and professionalism. Methods We conducted a critical review with the aim of answering questions that clinical educators wishing to increase the focus on emotions in their curriculum might ask. Results Although EI seems, intuitively, to be a construct that is relevant to educating safe and compassionate doctors, important questions about it remain to be answered. Research to date has not established whether EI is a trait, a learned ability or a combination of the two. Furthermore, there are methodological difficulties associated with measuring EI in a medical arena. If, as has been suggested, EI were to be used to select for medical school, there would be a real risk of including and excluding the wrong people. Conclusions Emotional intelligence‐based education may be able to contribute to the teaching of professionalism and communication skills in medicine, but further research is needed before its wholesale adoption in any curriculum can be recommended.