Effect of nurses' emotional intelligence on perceived professional benefit

Objective To investigate the current status of emotional intelligence and perceived professional benefits of nurses, and to analyze the relationship between them. Methods All 738 nurses from Zhuhai and Guangzhou in Guangdong province was investigated with general information questionnaire, emotional intelligence scale and nurses' perceived professional benefits scale. Results The average total score of emotional intelligence and perceived professional benefits was (3.73±0.58) and (4.07±0.53) respectively. Emotional intelligence and four dimensions were positively correlated with nursing perceived professional benefits and five dimensions (r=0.475~0.675, all P<0.01). Hierarchical regression analysis showed that emotional assessment of others(P<0.01)and self-emotion management (P<0.01) had positive predictive effect on perceived professional benefits, and explained 39.7% of the variance. Conclusions Nurses' emotional intelligence and perceived professional benefits were in the middle level and positively correlated. Managers of hospital may improve nurses' perceived professional benefits by strengthening the training of emotional intelligence. Key words: Nurses; Emotional intelligence; Perceived professional benefits; Positive psychology