Emotional Intelligence and Emotional Resilience: An Introduction Debbie Spain/Fiona Couper Tutor – Dept. of Mental Health Florence Nightingale School of Nursing & Midwifery

Learning outcomes By the end of the session, you will be able to: Define emotional intelligence and emotional resilience Discuss how these concepts relate to mental health nursing Critically explore factors potentially mediating EI and ER Identify strategies that may enhance EI and ER Have opportunities for reflection

Group discussion & ground rules

A moment of reflection …

Emotional intelligence: definitions Several definitions and models of EI The subset of social intelligence that involves the ability to monitor one’s own and others’ feelings and emotions, to discriminate among them, and to use this information to guide one’s thinking and actions (Salovey and Mayer, 1990) The ability to process emotional information, particularly as it involves the perception, assimilation, understanding and management of emotions (Mayer and Cobb, 2000)

EI: definitions contd. (Salovey and Mayer, 1990)

EI: definitions contd. (Mayer and Salovey, 1997)

EI: key aspects EI is not about relying on emotions instead of other intellectual / cognitive skills Involves several key elements: - Self-awareness- Emotional resilience - Interpersonal sensitivity - Motivation - Influence- Intuitiveness - Conscientiousness

A basic premise: Dealing with emotions and the impact of emotions is a core nursing skill (e.g. Bulmer-Smith et al., 2009; Heffernan et al., 2010; Warelow and Edward, 2007)

EI in everyday clinical practice Communication with service-users, families, staff Development of therapeutic relationships, rapport and empathy Working within emotive, unpredictable environments Ethical reasoning Decision-making / problem-solving Working as part of a multidisciplinary team Resolving conflict Managerial / leadership / mentorship responsibilities

EI and nursing: empirical evidence ? Fairly limited amount of empirical research Possible associations between EI and: - Stress and burnout? - Clinician satisfaction? - Service-user outcomes? - Self-compassion? (Bulmer-Smith et al., 2009)

Group work

Emotional competence Personal competence: comprises self-awareness, self- regulation and self-motivation Social competence: comprises social awareness, and social skills 1.Developing a group of habits and behaviours that one can use to recognise own feelings and those of others, and then taking appropriate action 2.Recognising negative / unhelpful emotions when they occur, considering how this affects behavioural responses, and identifying alternative or more helpful ways of reacting and responding (EI consortium, accessed May 2012)

Emotional competence (EI consortium, 2012)

Emotional competence: using emotions effectively When directing attention When making decisions When anticipating feelings When facilitating certain kinds of thinking and mood - e.g. positive or critical moods

Emotional resilience: definitions A set of conditions that allow individual adaptation to different forms of adversity at different points in the life course” (Mental Health Foundation / DH, 2009) Emotional flexibility Involves reflection on several aspects of a situation

Another moment of reflection …

ER: key aspects Promotes reflection and critical thinking Informs choice and use of coping strategies May facilitate a more adaptive response to emotive and unpredictable situations / environments Enhances communication and engagement Anything else ?

A clinician with well developed ER is … ? Non-judgemental Client focused Professional An active listener Open and trustworthy Approachable Practical and consistent Empathetic Guided by values/ beliefs Aware of boundaries Able to self-disclose when appropriate

Group work

EI and ER: possible strategies Looking after OWN well-being and health Increasing engagement in enjoyable activities Identifying and acknowledging early indicators and / or sources of stress Identifying and managing emotion Recognising and effectively using non-verbal cues Enhanced time management skills

EI and ER: possible strategies Being goal-focused: clear aims and outcomes Boundary-setting Delegating tasks, roles, responsibilities Developing peer networks and team working Identifying proactive ways of dealing with conflict Reflection and clinical supervision Anything else ?

Some future considerations Changing nature of mental health service provision Predictive and maintaining factors of stress and burnout ? Valid and reliable methods of measuring EI, ER and coping ? A role for self-compassion ?

1.Self-kindness – being kind and compassionate to oneself 2.Common humanity – recognising shared experience 3.Mindfulness – adopting a balanced, non-judgmental approach (Neff, 2003) Heffernan et al. (2010): positive associations found between: - SC and ability to regulate mood - SC and positive mental health - SC and (adaptive) coping style

Useful help guide

References Birks, Y. et al. (2009). Emotional intelligence and perceived stress in healthcare students: a multi-institutional, multi-professional survey. BMC Medical Education, 9, 61, 8 pages. Bulmer-Smith, K. et al. (2009). Emotional intelligence and nursing: An integrative literature review. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 46, Consortium for Research on Emotional Intelligence in Organisations. (accessed May 2012) Dusseldorp.L. et al (2010). Emotional Intelligence of mental health nurses. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 20, Edward, K. (2005). The phenomenon of resilience in crisis care mental health clinicians. International Journal of Mental Health Nursing, 14,

References Heffernan, M. et al. (2010). Self-compassion and emotional intelligence in nurses. International Journal of Nursing Practice, 16, Mayer, D. and Salovey, P. (1997). What is emotional intelligence. In P Salovey and D Sluyter (eds). Emotional development and emotional intelligence: Implications for Educators. New York Mental Health Foundation / DH. (2009). Emotional Resilience Toolkit. London: HM Stationary Office. Neff, K. (2003). Self-compassion: An Alternative conceptualization of a healthy attitude towards oneself. Self and Identity, 2, Salovey, P. and Mayer, D. (1990). Emotional Intelligence. Imagination, Cognition and Personality, 9 Warelow P. & Edward K. (2007). Caring as a resilient practice in mental health nursing. International Journal of Mental Health Nursing, 16,