Disruptive behaviour of students in primary education and emotional intelligence

This study analyses the relation between disruptive behaviours and the emotional abilities of children in primary education. To do this, disruptive behaviour and emotional abilities were evaluated in 1422 pupils aged between 6 and 12 years of age at 11 education centres using EQIjv. No relation was found between disruptive behaviours and age, but one was found for sex and emotional abilities. Boys presented more disruptive behaviours than girls. However, there was a significant relation between disruptive behaviours and the general index of emotional intelligence. The most related abilities were stress management and interpersonal relations. Implications of these results are discussed. © 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.