Emotional Intelligence of Adolescent Students belonging to Army and Civil Backgrounds - A Comparative Study

Abstract

Emotional intelligence (EI) refers to the ability to understand, manage, and express one's own emotions, while also recognizing and understanding the emotions of others. The lifestyle of children from army background has a significant long-term influence on the development of their emotional intelligence. Constant relocations expose these adolescents to diverse social settings and emotional experiences, which enhances their adaptability and resilience. Over time, they learn to navigate unfamiliar environments, build new relationships quickly, and cope with the emotional strain of frequent goodbyes. This repeated exposure to emotional transitions fosters a higher level of maturity and empathy compared to many of their peers. Hence, in the present study, an attempt was made to compare the Emotional Intelligence of adolescent students from army and civil backgrounds. A descriptive survey method was used for the study. The Emotional Intelligence Scale developed by Dr Arun Kumar Singh & Dr. Shruti Narain was used as the tool for data collection. A total of 600 adolescent students were selected from two Kendriya Vidyalayas and one Army Public School in Binnaguri Cantonment, West Bengal. Out of these, 300 students (150 boys and 150 girls) were from army background, and the other 300 students (also 150 boys and 150 girls) were from civil background. Mean, standard deviation, and t-test were used for the analysis of the data in the study. The results of the study revealed that there is no significant difference in Emotional Intelligence between students belonging to army and civil backgrounds. When compared within each background, both army and civil male and female students also showed no major variation in EI. Although students from the army background scored slightly higher, the difference was too small to be statistically significant.