Psihološka Obzorja (Jul 2007)
The relationship of reflection and rumination with emotional intelligence and self-esteem
Abstract
The question of the benefits of self-consciousness in terms of psychological health and well-being is still open for discussion. Older studies uncovered positive as well as negative correlates of self-consciousness that gave rise to the "self-absorption paradox". Newer concepts of rumination and reflection based on the motives for self-consciousness offer new ways of solving this paradox. The study explored the relationship of reflection and rumination with emotional intelligence and self-esteem. High-school students (N = 165, i.e. 65 men and 100 women) took part in the study. The average age of the participants was 17.5 years. The results show significant positive correlations between self-esteem, emotional intelligence, and reflection. The correlations between rumination, self-esteem, and emotional intelligence are significant and negative. The research thus showed that the way of thinking about oneself and the motives behind self-consciousness are important for self-esteem and emotional intelligence. Merely thinking about oneself is therefore not necessarily emotionally intelligent. In future research, however, it would probably be better to use tests instead of self-descriptive questionnaires of emotional intelligence.
