The emotional intelligence of surgical residents: a descriptive study

Jensen, Aaron R.; Wright, Andrew S.; Lance, Avalon R.; O’Brien, Kurt C.; Pratt, Charles D.; Anastakis, Dimitri J.; Pellegrini, Carlos A.; Horvath, Karen D.

doi:10.1016/j.amjsurg.2007.08.049

« Previous Next »The American Journal of Surgery
Volume 195, Issue 1 , Pages 5-10, January 2008

The emotional intelligence of surgical residents: a descriptive study

Presented at the 27th Annual Meeting of the Association for Surgical Education, Washington, DC, April 10–14, 2007

Aaron R. Jensen, M.D.
- Department of Surgery, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA
- College of Education, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
- Corresponding author. Tel.: +1-206-616-5687; fax: +1-206-543-8136.
Andrew S. Wright, M.D.
- Department of Surgery, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA
Avalon R. Lance, M.H.A.
- Department of Surgery, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA
Kurt C. O’Brien, M.A.
- Office of Organizational Development, University of Washington Medical Center, Seattle, WA, USA
Charles D. Pratt, M.S.
- Charles Pratt Consulting, Inc., Camano Island, WA, USA
Dimitri J. Anastakis, M.D., M.Ed., M.H.C.M.
- Division of Plastic Surgery, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Carlos A. Pellegrini, M.D.
- Department of Surgery, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA
Karen D. Horvath, M.D.
- Department of Surgery, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA

Received 31 March 2007; received in revised form 10 August 2007

Abstract

Background

We assessed educational needs with regard to leadership, communication, and emotional intelligence (EI) among surgical residents.

Methods

General surgery residents (n = 74) were examined using the BarOn Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i) and a 20-item survey.

Results

Residents believed that leadership skills were important (mean 4.7, SD .5) and that they had skills in each the five EI areas (overall mean 4.1, SD .8). Both the overall group’s EQ-i scores (mean 106.6, SD 11.6), as well as scores on the 20 components of the EQ-i (range of means 102–110), were higher than national norms. Individuals varied substantially on EQ-i subscale scores.

Conclusions

Surgical residents believed that leadership skills are important and scored strongly on both an EI self-assessment and the EQ-i. Specific individual differences in subscale scores can potentially identify areas for direct educational intervention.

Keywords: Communication, Emotional intelligence, Leadership, Resident training, Surgical education