934519

research-article2020
ISP0010.1177/0020764020934519International Journal of Social PsychiatryBaba

E CAMDEN SCHIZOPH

Research Paper

International Journal of

Navigating COVID-19 with emotional Social Psychiatry

1­–11
© The Author(s) 2020
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DOI: 10.1177/0020764020934519
https://doi.org/10.1177/0020764020934519
journals.sagepub.com/home/isp

Mubashir Majid Baba

Abstract
Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered coronavirus.
COVID-19 has affected educational systems worldwide, leading to the widespread closure of schools, colleges and
universities. The COVID-19 pandemic is also having a dramatic impact on societies and economies around the world.
With various measures of lockdowns and social distancing in place, it becomes important to understand emotional
intelligence of faculty members working in institutions of higher learning on a large scale in this pandemic.
Aim: The purpose of this article is to examine the perception of faculty members toward their emotional intelligence
during COVID-19 and to study the impact of demographic variables on their emotional intelligence.
Method: The data collected were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The data for the study were
collected through both the primary and secondary sources. Online questionnaires were used to gather the primary data.
The measuring items used for the study were sourced from existing validated scales and literature. Descriptive statistics
was employed to know the descriptive information across various demographic variables on a total sample of 683. The
various demographic variables, which were considered for the study, were gender and designation.
Results: The results revealed that the faculty members perceived their emotional intelligence at an above-average level
in the present pandemic, that is, COVID-19. The results also revealed that the perception of the respondent faculty
members toward their emotional intelligence from different universities and states is more or less the same and also the
demographic variable gender has a significant impact on emotional intelligence during the present pandemic.
Conclusion: Besides having theoretical implications that open pathways for conducting further research, the findings of
the study may serve as a reference for service practitioners in designing strategies that will ensure superior performance
of faculty members in higher educational institutions during the pandemic.

Keywords
COVID-19, emotional intelligence, faculty, education

Introduction anxiety, stress and fear. COVID-19 spreads quickly, is

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an infectious
disease caused by a newly discovered coronavirus. In
December 2019, multiple unexplained cases of pneumonia
were reported in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China.
Epidemiological findings revealed severe human-to-
human transmission, which was later confirmed to be
caused by a novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) infection. The
World Health Organization (WHO, 2020) named it Corona
Virus Disease 2019. It can be transmitted through respira-
tory droplets, contact and aerosols (Special Expert Group
for Control of the Epidemic of Novel Coronavirus
Pneumonia of the Chinese Preventive Medicine
Association, 2020). As a result, large-scale infection of
COVID-19 has been caused worldwide. The COVID-19
pandemic is having a dramatic impact on societies and
economies around the world. The virus is affecting mil-
lions of lives worldwide, not only physically but also emo-
tionally in the form of panic attacks, obsessional behavior,
highly contagious and can be fatal in severe cases and
there are no specific medicines; it poses a huge threat to
the life and has a large impact on the emotional responses
of individuals (L. Huang, Xu, & Liu, 2020). Most coun-
tries are – at the time of writing this article – in various
stages of a lockdown. Schools and universities are closed
or operate online-only, and merely essential shops are kept
open. At the same time, lockdown measures such as social
distancing (e.g., keeping a distance of at least 1.5 m from
one another and only socializing with two people at most)
might have a direct impact on people’s mental health
Department of Management Studies, University of Kashmir, Srinagar,
India
Corresponding author:
Mubashir Majid Baba, Department of Management Studies, University
of Kashmir, Hazratbal, Srinagar 190006, Jammu and Kashmir, India.
Email: mubashirbaba@rediffmail.com
2 International Journal of Social Psychiatry 00(0)
(Kleinberg et al., 2020). COVID-19 has put huge impact
on the mental health of the general public, causing people
to differ degree of emotional problem (Gao et al., 2020).
The outbreak of COVID-19 has resulted in tension, anxi-
ety and fear, which has led to psychological disorders such
as acute stress disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder,
depression and suicide. Infectious diseases elicit a wide
range of emotional responses, not everyone experiences
the same degree of emotional impact (Khalid et al., 2016).
Notwithstanding the effect of the COVID-19 on indi-
viduals’ feelings, individuals’ adapting methodologies
will likewise change subsequently. Adapting is the mus-
ings and activities that people use to manage distressing
occasions (Folkman et al., 1987). Individuals have distin-
guished two general adapting techniques: One is an
issue-centered adapting, the object is to understand the
issue or make a move to change the state of affairs; the
other is an emotion-focused coping, which aims to reduce
the emotional distress associated with stressful situations
(Folkman & Lazarus, 1980). Studies have discovered that
feelings lead to explicit adapting methodologies (Frijda,
1994) and the other way around. Emotions are thought to
have persuasive properties that propel certain practices
(Frijda, 1994; Levenson, 1994). For instance, dread is
identified with the want to sidestep and shield themselves
from occurrences, outrage prompts want to assault, dis-
turb prompts want to oust and joy prompts want to engage
(Fredrickson, 2001; Frijda, 1994). Besides, emotions
have been connected to the utilization of explicit adapt-
ing procedures (Charles et al., 2001). In specific, grown-
ups who report more indignation and dread-like utilize
dynamic-situated adapting systems, for example, posing
inquiries, while the individuals who are miserable are
bound to utilize non-dynamic adapting methodologies,
for example, maintaining a strategic distance from or tol-
erating issues (Charles et al., 2001). Thus, the effective
utilization of adapting methodologies will assist people
with overseeing upsetting occasions (Folkman et al.,
1987) furthermore – lessen negative feelings (Folkman
et al., 1987). Nonetheless, the course of the connection
between emotional reactions and coping strategies is not
clear, and the relationship is not generally steady. A few
examinations have discovered that the connection
between them is age-explicit during COVID-19 (Yeung
& Fung, 2007).
The rapidly evolving COVID-19 epidemic presents
clinical leaders with an unprecedented challenge: leading
teams through a crisis with unknown scope and no clear
end in sight. This is a marathon, not a sprint and the weeks
ahead will present endless leadership moments and diffi-
cult decisions. As leaders work tirelessly to meet the many
challenging moments that lay ahead, they must do so with
emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence is a true
intelligence which helps a person to achieve success in
every area of life whether it is at the workplace, home or
society. It gives a foundation to build emotions in a bal-
anced way so that a person can handle different situations
in a very effective manner. Goleman (1998) defined emo-
tional intelligence as ‘the capacity for recognizing our own
feelings and those of others, for motivating ourselves and
for managing emotions well in ourselves and in our rela-
tionships’. The notion of emotional intelligence rises out
of the search for a set of measurable tendencies and capa-
bilities which, in addition to IQ, may serve as valid predic-
tors of academic, occupational and life success (Fox &
Spector, 2000). Emotional intelligence allows managing
the human and emotional complexity of a moment like
this. Emotional intelligence is significant in successfully
dealing with daily environmental pressure: self-awareness,
emotional control, relationships and effective communica-
tion during COVID-19. The lack of verified facts and
floating rumors are to be blamed for the so much panic in
this pandemic vulnerable to physically and psychologi-
cally negative impacts. It has been estimated that up to
80% of those affected by a crisis will have mild distress,
20% to 40% a psychological disorder in the medium term,
and up to 5% may be left with a long-term problem (Hunt
& Greaves, 2017). The present crisis due to COVID-19 is
testing everyone’s emotional intelligence and emotional
stability. Those who survive are not the strongest or the
most intelligent, but the most adaptable to change. It is the
responsibility of leaders to show empathy, optimism and
flexibility that will lead the people out of this crisis which
will ultimately depict in individuals as well.
In educational institutions, the role of academicians is
very critical. To do that, they have to perform in the best way.
The performances of academicians rely on many factors like
their emotional intelligence, leadership style and decision
making. Emotional intelligence is a true intelligence which
helps a person to achieve success in every area of life whether
it is at the workplace, home or society. It gives a foundation
to build emotions in a balanced way so that a person can
handle different situations in a very effective manner.
Academicians feel a sense of pride in their organization
when they are emotionally engaged and become motivated
to work for it. Their positive energy transfers to their stu-
dents/colleagues and makes the learning more effective.
There is a need to develop responsible and emotionally
healthy academicians to meet the various issues and chal-
lenges of education, especially higher education. The per-
ception of faculty members about their HOD’s emotional
intelligence before COVID-19 conducted by Baba et al.
(2019) in universities of North India resulted in the mean
score of 3.80, thereby indicating that an above-average level
of emotional intelligence was perceived by faculty members
about their Head of Department’s (HOD) emotional intelli-
gence. In this light, the present study investigates how the
academicians are using their emotional intelligence skills to
overcome the various disorders associated with COVID-19.
As far as researcher’s knowledge is concerned, there has
Baba 3
been no systematic assessment of the effects of COVID-19
on academician’s emotional responses. Based on this, the
purpose of this study was to explore the current status of
emotional intelligence of faculty members working in differ-
ent institutions of higher learning. The first section contains
the literature review, identification of gaps and development
of objectives. The methodology is discussed in the second
section, including sample, instruments and data collection
design. The third section contains the analysis, conclusions
and implications of the study.
This study attempts to answer the following research
questions:
RQ1: What is the level of emotional intelligence among
faculty members in higher education sector in sample
selected institutions during COVID-19?
RQ2: What is the impact of demographic variable –
Gender – on emotional intelligence during
COVID-19?
Review of literature
Emotional intelligence
Emotional intelligence has its origin in the idea of ‘Social
Intelligence’, which was first identified by E.L. Thorndike.
Thorndike (1920) defined Social Intelligence as ‘the abil-
ity to understand and manage men and women, boys and
girls – to act wisely in human relations’. Following
Thorndike, Gardner (1983) proposed his theory of multi-
ple intelligence which included interpersonal and intraper-
sonal intelligences that were closely related to social
intelligence concept. Although Gardner did not use the
term emotional intelligence, his ideas of interpersonal and
intrapersonal intelligences provided the basis for the con-
cept of emotional intelligence. Put simply, intrapersonal
intelligence is the ability to manage one’s own emotions,
and interpersonal intelligence is the ability to manage the
emotions of others as well as dealing with others.
The credit for first usage of the term ‘Emotional
Intelligence’ goes to Wayne Leone Payne. He used it in his
doctoral thesis –‘A study of emotion: developing emotional
intelligence; self-integration; relating to fear, pain and desire’
in 1985 (Payne, 1985). Bar-On (1988) developed perhaps the
first instrument to assess emotional intelligence in terms of a
measure of well-being. In his doctoral dissertation, he used
the term ‘Emotional Quotient’ (EQ). Later on he developed
the ‘Emotional Quotient Inventory’ (EQ-I; Bar-On, 1997).
In 1990, psychologists Salovey and Mayer (1990) first
formally identified the term emotional intelligence and
defined it as ‘the subset of social intelligence that involves
the ability to monitor one’s own and others’ feelings and
emotions, to discriminate among them and to use this
information to guide one’s thinking and actions’. While
many scholars have contributed to this topic, an influential
emotional intelligence model developed by Goleman has
received prominence. Goleman (1998) defined emotional
intelligence as ‘the capacity for recognizing our own feel-
ings and those of others, for motivating ourselves and for
managing emotions well in ourselves and in our relation-
ships’. Boyatzis et al. (2000) refined Goleman’s (1998)
emotional intelligence model from five dimensions (self-
awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy and social
skills) down to four (self-awareness, self-management,
social-awareness and relationship management), to cap-
ture the full scope of emotional competencies.
Goleman (1996) and Bar-On (1997) identified self-
awareness as the most important dimension of emotional
intelligence. Self-awareness is the keystone of emotional
intelligence (Goleman, 1996). If someone knows their
internal states of emotion, it allows self-control and leads
to empathy in others. Furthermore, according to Goleman
(1996), self-control or self-managing of our emotions can
keep us away from anger, anxiety and gloom and, in turn,
allow us to become active in our work and life. Social
awareness is recognizing emotions in others or the ability
to know how another feels. Goleman (1996) stated, ‘empa-
thy, another ability that builds on emotional self-aware-
ness, is the fundamental people skill’. Empathy is important
in relationship management, the skill of managing emo-
tions in others (Goleman, 1996).
Factors of emotional intelligence
Managing relations. Relationship management is the
ability to use our awareness of our own emotions and those
of others to manage interactions successfully. This ensures
clear communication and effective handling of conflict
(Bradberry & Greaves, 2009). Social skills enable a per-
son to move people in a certain desired position, whether it
is agreement on a new strategy or enthusiasm about a new
vision. Socially skilled people tend to have an ability to
build rapport with people (Salovey & Mayer, 1990).
Self-motivation.  This involves the control of emotional
tendencies that guide or facilitate reaching goals (Gole-
man, 1995). Profoundly self-motivated people blossom
with innovative difficulties, accept pride in a position well
done and appreciate learning. Set methodology is tested,
and investigating new ways or potential ways to deal with
their work is a necessary piece of their typical conduct
(Salovey & Mayer, 1990).
Altruistic behavior. Altruism is the willingness to do
things that seek to increase the welfare of others, not one’s
own, is voluntary, is intentional, involving helping oth-
ers and expects no reward (Simmons, 1991). This type of
behavior is voluntary and is characterized by perceiving
and understanding others’ problems, being empathetic and
not looking for reward of any kind. In this context, Clark-
son (2014) considers that altruistic behavior involves some
degree of self-sacrifice.
4 International Journal of Social Psychiatry 00(0)
Rosopa et al. (2013) state that people in companies who
behave altruistically are perceived as more emotionally
stable, extraverted, open to experience, agreeable and con-
scientious. They are also more highly valued than those
who do not behave in this way.
Self-awareness. Self-awareness is the ability to accu-
rately perceive our own emotions in the moment and
understand our tendencies across situations. Self-aware-
ness includes staying on top of our typical reactions to spe-
cific events, challenges and people (Bradberry & Greaves,
2009). There is a well-established body of research which
generally affirms the contention that self-awareness has
a positive impact on leadership performance (Ashford,
1989; Atwater & Yammarino, 1992). Generally, these stud-
ies have held that individual self-awareness is positively
associated with desired affective outcomes and increased
managerial effectiveness.
Empathy.  The term empathy refers to sensitivity to, and
understanding of, the mental states of others. Hollin (1994)
has written that ‘the ability to see the world, including
one’s own behavior, from another person’s point of view
is to display empathy’. According to Hogan (1969), empa-
thy is ‘the act of constructing for oneself another person’s
mental state’. Hoffman (1987) has defined empathy as ‘an
affective response more appropriate to someone else’s sit-
uation than to one’s own’.
Emotional stability.  Emotional stability or neuroticism is
perhaps the most enduring personality concept in psychol-
ogy (Judge et al., 2004). Emotional stable people could be
expected to be calm and to complain little about their per-
sonal worries and anxieties. In a meta-analysis of the rela-
tionships between 137 distinct personality construct and
subjective well-being, DeNeve and Cooper (1998) found
that emotional stability was the strongest predictor of both
happiness and life satisfaction.
Integrity.  Emotional integrity, accordingly, is not an emo-
tion but a system of emotions in balance, a way of handling
one’s emotions but, more important, a way of cultivating
one’s emotions in a kind of effective harmony. The word
‘integrity’ means ‘wholeness’, wholeness of virtue, whole-
ness as a person, wholeness in the sense of being an integral
part of something larger than the person – the community,
the corporation, society, humanity, cosmos. Emotional integ-
rity is also wholeness as a person and wholeness in the sense
of being an integral part of something larger than oneself, a
wholeness in which leadership plays a natural role (Ciulla
et al., 2005).
Value orientations. Value orientations refer to general-
ized and organized conceptions of what individuals view as
desirable and undesirable relative to person–environment
interactions and interpersonal relations (Kluckhohn, 1956).
Put differently, value orientations represent ‘a broad ten-
dency to prefer certain states of affairs over others’ (Hof-
stede, 1980) and, in effect, describe how an individual
feels the world should work or how he or she would like
it to work. Value orientations thus provide individuals
with general standards for conduct or behavioral guides
that are capable of being applied across diverse situations
(Schwartz, 1992).
Commitment. According to Werkmeister (1967), com-
mitment is a manifestation of the individual’s own self and
reflects value standards that are basic to the individual’s
existence as a person. Some empirical support to this view
was provided in studies relating work values to commit-
ment (Kidron, 1978).
Self-development. 
Self-development means seeking
and using feedback, setting development goals, engag-
ing in developmental activities, and tracking progress on
one’s own. This assumes that people are capable not only
of monitoring their own behaviors, but also of recogniz-
ing which behaviors and outcomes are most favorable and
desirable. (London & Smither, 1999)
COVID-19
The virus originated in bats and was transmitted to humans
through yet unknown intermediary animals in Wuhan,
Hubei province, China, in December 2019. There have
been around 96,000 reported cases of COVID 2019 and
3,300 reported deaths to date (5 March 2020) (Singhal,
2020). The disease is transmitted by inhalation or contact
with infected droplets, and the incubation period ranges
from 2 to 14 days. The symptoms are usually fever, cough,
sore throat, breathlessness, fatigue, malaise, among oth-
ers. The disease is mild in most people; in some (usually
the elderly and those with comorbidities), it may progress
to pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome
(ARDS) and multi-organ dysfunction. Many people are
asymptomatic.
In December 2019, adults in Wuhan, capital city of
Hubei province and a major transportation hub of China,
started presenting to local hospitals with severe pneumo-
nia of unknown cause. Many of the initial cases had a
common exposure to the Huanan wholesale seafood mar-
ket that also traded live animals. The surveillance system
(put into place after the severe acute respiratory syn-
drome (SARS) outbreak) was activated, and respiratory
samples of patients were sent to reference labs for etio-
logic investigations. On 31 December 2019, China noti-
fied the outbreak to the WHO, and on 1 January, the
Huanan seafood market was closed. On 7 January, the
virus was identified as a coronavirus that had >95%
homology with the bat coronavirus and >70% similarity
Baba 5
with the SARS-CoV (severe acute respiratory syndrome–
related coronavirus). Environmental samples from the
Huanan seafood market also tested positive, signifying
that the virus originated from there (Xinhua, 2020). The
number of cases started increasing exponentially, some
of which did not have exposure to the live animal market,
suggestive of the fact that human-to-human transmission
was occurring (C. Huang, Wang, et al., 2020). The first
fatal case was reported on 11 January 2020. It is impor-
tant to note that while the number of new cases has
reduced in China lately, they have increased exponen-
tially in other countries, including South Korea, Italy and
Iran. Of those infected, 20% are in critical condition,
25% have recovered and 3,310 (3,013 in China and 297
in other countries) have died (Coronavirus Outbreak,
2020).
Rationale
The study is significant in the field of emotional intelli-
gence and is expected to add new knowledge in the rela-
tionship between COVID-19 and emotional intelligence
concept. The study will assist in design and development
of emotional intelligence programs particularly in the
higher educational institutions of India keeping in view
that the institutions have been closed since the outbreak
of COVID-19 and also will help faculty members in
using their emotional intelligence skills while interacting
with their students, colleagues, family members and so
on.
Research methodology
The present study is exploratory-cum-descriptive in nature,
and the sample comprised professors, associate professors
and assistant professors from the selected universities. The
study has been conducted in North Indian states, that is,
Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir and the
Union Territory of Delhi. The higher educational institu-
tions of North Indian states under study were included,
which comprised central and state universities. The uni-
versities included in the study were University of Kashmir,
Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, University
of Jammu, University of Lucknow, Maharshi Dayanand
University, Central University of Kashmir, Delhi
University, Jamia Millia Islamia, Aligarh Muslim
University and Central University of Haryana. The sample
size was calculated according to the number of items in the
study. Every item requires minimum 5 respondents and
maximum 10 respondents for the determination of the rep-
resentative sample size (Hair et al., 1998). Keeping in
view the sampling error, it was proposed to take the sample
of 750. In return, 683 questionnaires were received. The
data for the study were collected through both the primary
Table 1.  Modifications in emotional intelligence scale.
Original item Revised item
I am able to encourage I encourage others to take
people to take initiative initiatives for the development
of the department in this difficult
time of COVID-19
COVID-19: Coronavirus disease 2019.
Source: The Author.
and secondary sources. Online questionnaires were used to
gather the primary data because of COVID-19. Data were
collected between 6 and 20 April, 2020. Individuals agree-
ing to participate were asked to complete the questionnaire
through mail and social media (WhatsApp, Twitter and
Facebook). The measuring items used for the study were
sourced from existing validated scales and literature. The
questionnaire consisted of two sections. Section ‘A’
included demographic information of respondents, while
Section ‘B’ included statements of emotional intelligence.
The demographic characteristics were gender and designa-
tion. In perceptual gap, only gender has been considered
keeping in view the related work that has been done on
gender. The emotional intelligence scale has been adapted
from Hyde et al. (2002). So, the notion of emotional intel-
ligence was captured by administering questionnaire of
emotional intelligence with modifications keeping in view
COVID-19 on faculty members for knowing their percep-
tion about their emotional intelligence during the pan-
demic (Table 1).
The respondents were briefly instructed as to the pur-
pose of the study, and consent was taken from the respond-
ents after mentioning the study objectives, methods, risks
and benefits associated with the research. It was also
ensured that confidentiality and independent responding
were maintained. Participation was anonymous and treated
according to American Psychological Association ethical
guidelines in conformance with the guidelines in the
Declaration of Helsinki.
To capture the responses of the sample elements, a
5-point Likert-type scale (ranging from 1 = strongly disa-
gree, 2 = disagree, 3 = undecided, 4 = agree and 5 = strongly
agree) was used throughout the study. The questionnaire
comprised 28 items. All the items were framed keeping in
view the context of the study. The employees included
from institutions were governed by the principle of simple
random sampling. It was an endeavor of the scholar that
each possible category, that is, gender, designation and
type of university (central or state), would represent the
final sample. Reliability of the questionnaire during pilot
study was assessed by overall Cronbach’s alpha. The over-
all ‘Cronbach Alpha’ calculated using SPSS is .768, which
is much higher than the acceptable level in social science
research (Hair et al., 1998).
6 International Journal of Social Psychiatry 00(0)

Analysis Among the seven dimensions of emotional intelligence,

Sample characteristics of the respondents
Descriptive statistics was employed to know the descrip-
tive information across various demographic variables on
a total sample of 683. The various demographic variables
which were considered for the study were gender and des-
ignation. The analysis of the sample revealed the charac-
teristics as indicated in Table 2.
Emotional intelligence
The perception of faculty members about their emotional
intelligence and its dimensions in the sample universities
is provided in Table 3. A mean score of 3.75 or a percent-
age score of 75.0% indicates that an above-average level
of emotional intelligence is perceived by faculty members
in the sampled universities during COVID-19. The stand-
ard deviation of .698 also supports that the results are rea-
sonably trustworthy. The perception of faculty members of
the sample universities regarding the dimensions of emo-
tional intelligence also appears to be at an above-average
level with mean scores of 3.89, 3.22, 3.73, 3.71, 3.85, 3.88
and 3.97 reported for managing relations, self-motivation,
commitment and altruism, self-awareness, empathy,
emotional stability and ‘value orientation and integrity’,
respectively (Table 3).
Table 2.  Sample characteristics.
Demographic Overall
variable
Particulars Frequency
Gender Male 420
Female 263
Designation Professor 140
Associate professor 215
Assistant professor 328
Source: The Author.
the respondents have reported highest for value orientation
and integrity followed by managing relations, emotional
stability, empathy, commitment and altruism, self-aware-
ness and self-motivation, respectively.
The overall mean scores depict a favorable and positive
perception of faculty members with regard to their emo-
tional intelligence and its constituent dimensions. This
observation is also vindicated by the fact that all the 28
statements measuring emotional intelligence have secured
at least a mean score higher than 3.00 or a percentage score
above 60%. The statement-wise analysis of emotional
intelligence provided in Table 4 shows that the mean
scores for all the 28 statements measuring emotional intel-
ligence range between 3.12 and 4.15, where the highest
mean score relates to empathy in statement 18. The lowest
mean score relates to managing relations in statement 1.
The highest mean score attained by the statement about
empathy indicates that the faculty of the sample institu-
tions is more empathetic during COVID-19. As can be
observed from Table 4, the lowest mean score marked for
statement 1 relating to ‘managing relations’ indicates that
faculty members due to physical distancing during
COVID-19 are focusing less on relationship management.
Emotional intelligence across states during
COVID-19: a comparison on the basis of
faculty perception
A comparison between faculty members of the four states
under study, with respect to their emotional intelligence
% age during the pandemic, is given in Table 5. From a compara-
tive viewpoint, the faculty members of Delhi have reported
61.49 the most favorable perception regarding their emotional
38.50 intelligence with a mean score of 4.01 or a percentage
20.49 score of 80.2%. Among the four states, faculty members of
31.47 Jammu and Kashmir have reported the lowest mean score
48.02
(3.44) or the percentage score of 68.8% with respect to
their emotional intelligence during COVID outbreak. Uttar

Table 3.  Emotional intelligence as perceived by faculty members during COVID-19.

S. No. Dimension Mean score Percentage of mean score Standard deviation Ranking
1. MR 3.89 77.8 .822 2nd
2. SM 3.22 64.4 .753 7th
3. CA 3.73 74.6 .673 5th
4. SA 3.71 74.2 .717 6th
5. EY 3.85 77.0 .651 4th
6. ES 3.88 77.6 .821 3rd
7. VOI 3.97 79.4 .677 1st
Overall EI 3.75 75.0 .698 –

COVID-19: Coronavirus disease 2019; MR: managing relations; SM: self-motivation; CA: commitment and altruism; SA: self-awareness; EY: empathy;
ES: emotional stability; VOI: value orientation and integrity; EI: emotional intelligence.
Source: The Author.
Baba 7

Table 4.  Item-wise analysis of faculty perception about their emotional intelligence during COVID-19.

S. No. Statement Mean score SD Percentage

scorea
1. I encourage others to work even when things are not favorable 3.12 .800 62.4
2. I do not depend on others’ encouragement to do my work well in this pandemic 4.02 .781 80.4
3. I see the brighter side of present situation 3.95 .882 79.0
4. I am an inspiration for others during this pandemic 3.57 .798 71.4
5. I am able to assess the situation and then behave accordingly 4.07 .728 81.4
6. I think feelings should be managed in these difficult times 3.98 .966 79.6
7. I believe that happiness is a positive attitude that can help us to reduce stress in 3.77 .951 75.4
this pandemic
8. I encourage others to take initiatives for the development of the department in 3.45 .873 69.0
this difficult time of COVID-19
9. I am handling conflicts well during the present times 3.53 .811 70.6
10. I meet commitments and keep promises 3.68 .932 73.6
11. I am organized and careful in my work in this difficult time of COVID-19 3.25 .930 65.0
12. I continue to do what I believe in, even under severe criticism 3.50 .967 70.0
13. I have my priorities clear even in this pandemic 3.74 .787 74.8
14. I believe in myself that I can face this pandemic in an effective way 4.05 .898 81.0
15. I have built rapport and made and maintained personal friendships with work 3.87 .807 77.4
associates even staying at home
16. I pay attention to my worries and concerns in these difficult times 4.04 .883 80.8
17. I listen without the urge to say something 3.45 .853 69.0
18. I try to see the other person’s point of view for the development of the 4.15 .780 83.0
department whether it is about using Zoom application, Google Classroom or
conducting webinars
19. I am able to stay focused under pressure 3.71 .809 74.2
20. I am able to handle multiple demands at my home 3.94 .751 78.8
21. I do not mix unnecessary emotions with issues at hand 3.47 .888 69.4
22. I am open and comfortable to novel ideas and new information during this 3.98 .894 79.6
pandemic
23. I am persistent in pursuing goals despite obstacles and setbacks because of 3.75 .939 75.0
COVID-19
24. I am able to identify and separate my emotions 3.76 .966 75.2
25. I stand up for my beliefs in these difficult times 4.11 .767 82.2
26. I am able to maintain the standards of honesty and integrity 3.64 .911 72.8
27. I confront unethical actions of others even in this pandemic 3.61 .880 72.2
28. I pursue goals beyond what is required and expected of me 4.00 .927 80.0
Overall EI 3.75 .698 75.0

COVID-19: Coronavirus disease 2019; SD: standard deviation; EI: emotional intelligence.
Source: The Author.
a
Percentage score = mean score × 20.

Pradesh stands at second with the mean score of 3.93 or
percentage mean score of 78.6, and Haryana figures at
rank third with the mean score of 3.62 or the percentage
score of 72.4%.
A one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) test was
employed to examine whether the differences in the mean
scores of the respondents from four states are statistically
significant or not. The results revealed that the difference
is merely an outcome of chance factor and not statistically
significant (F value = 2.689; significance = .085), indicat-
ing that the perception of the respondent faculty members
regarding their emotional intelligence during this pan-
demic in different states is more or less the same.
Emotional intelligence: a comparison of state
and central universities
From a comparative stand point, emotional intelligence of
faculty members during COVID-19 in central universities
appears to be better (mean score = 4.03; percentage of
mean score = 80.6%) than the state universities (mean
score = 3.47; percentage of mean score = 69.4%) (Table 6).
However, Z-test was employed to examine whether the dif-
ferences between the state and central universities during the
outbreak are statistically significant or not. The results revealed
that the difference is merely an outcome of chance factor and
not statistically significant (Z-value = –1.425, p = .218).
8 International Journal of Social Psychiatry 00(0)

Table 5.  Emotional intelligence across states during COVID-19: A comparison on the basis of faculty perception.

S. No. State Mean score Percentage of mean score Ranking F value Significance*
1. Jammu and Kashmir 3.44 68.8 4th 2.689 .085ns
2. Delhi 4.01 80.2 1st
3. Haryana 3.62 72.4 3rd
4. Uttar Pradesh 3.93 78.6 2nd

COVID-19: Coronavirus disease 2019; ns = not significant.

Source: The Author.
*p < .05.

Table 6.  Emotional intelligence: A comparison of state and central universities.

Mean score % of mean score Z-value Significance*

State universities 3.47 69.4 1.425 .218ns
Central universities 4.03 80.6
Overall 3.75 75.0

ns: not significant.

Source: The Author.
*p < .05.

Perceptual gap with respect to their emotional intelligence during COVID-

The differences in the perception of respondents related to
the variables that have been examined in this study are
considered quite relevant irrespective of their statistical
significance. Thus, the following section inspects the dif-
ferences in perceptions of respondents about the variable
under study. In perceptual gap, only gender has been con-
sidered keeping in view the related work that has been
done on gender.
Emotional intelligence and gender
Table 7 shows a comparison of male and female group of
respondents. Z-test was used because it compares emo-
tional intelligence dimensions and emotional intelligence
variable as a whole between the male and female respond-
ents. It becomes clear from the table that the overall mean
scores of male respondents were high as compared to
female respondents in almost all the dimensions of emo-
tional intelligence except in value orientation and integrity.
In the overall emotional intelligence variable, mean scores
of male respondents were also high as compared to female
respondents. The highest mean score was observed for
value orientation and integrity (3.95, .703) and managing
relations (3.95, .786) from the male respondents and low-
est for self-motivation (2.91, .819). Overall, the mean
score observed from emotional intelligence as a whole
from the male respondents is 3.84 and from female
respondents is 3.66.
Furthermore, Z-test was utilized to ascertain whether
the difference in the mean scores of the respondent male
and the female faculty members of the sample universities
19 and its dimensions is statistically significant or merely
an outcome of a random variation. The results indicate that
the perceptual differences of faculty members are statisti-
cally significant when the differences are evaluated on the
basis of gender as the p value is less than .05 in every
dimension of emotional intelligence and also as a whole.
Discussion, conclusion and
implications
The results revealed that the faculty members of the sam-
ple universities perceived their emotional intelligence
during COVID-19 at an above-average level and are fairly
satisfied with their level of emotional intelligence. The
perception of faculty members in the Indian universities
regarding the dimensions of emotional intelligence also
appears to be at an above-average level in the pandemic.
Among the seven dimensions of emotional intelligence,
the faculty members have reported highest for value ori-
entation and integrity followed by managing relations,
emotional stability, empathy, commitment and altruism,
self-awareness and self-motivation elements. Furthermore,
state-wise descriptive statistics and comparison thereof
were studied, which showed that emotional intelligence
level of faculty members is of higher order in Delhi fol-
lowed by Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir,
respectively. However, among the four states under study,
it was also found that there is no significant difference in
the level of emotional intelligence as perceived by the fac-
ulty members in different states. The faculty members
of Delhi University have reported the most favorable
Baba 9

Table 7.  Emotional intelligence and gender.

Group statistics (N = 683); male = 420, female = 263

Variables Gender Meana Overall mean score SD Z-value Significance*

Managing relations Male 3.95 3.89 .786 2.658 .003
Female 3.83 .864
Self-motivation Male 3.73 3.22 .612 2.210 .017
Female 2.91 .819
Commitment and altruism Male 3.77 3.73 .786 2.079 .021
Female 3.70 .986
Self-awareness Male 3.74 3.71 .794 3.435 .015
Female 3.68 .887
Empathy Male 3.87 3.85 .730 2.126 .036
Female 3.84 .707
Emotional stability Male 3.91 3.88 .882 1.991 .012
Female 3.85 .981
Value orientation and integrity Male 3.95 3.97 .703 2.257 .046
Female 4.00 .676
Overall emotional intelligence Male 3.84 3.75 .635 2.608 .024
Female 3.66 .710

SD: standard deviation.

Source: The Author.
a
Higher mean score indicates more favorable perception of faculty members about their emotional intelligence and the lower mean scores indicate
the vice versa.
*p < .05.

perception regarding their emotional intelligence, while
faculty members of Central University of Haryana have
reported the lowest mean score with respect to their emo-
tional intelligence level during COVID-19. The calcu-
lated results revealed that there is significant difference in
the perception of faculty members across gender toward
the understudy dimensions of emotional intelligence dur-
ing COVID-19. In these times of uncertainty, most people
are nervous and anxious – practicing empathy in the face
of a crisis is essential. Coronavirus and social distancing
affect us all differently. Keeping in mind that others can
take this situation individually can help us interact better
with others, whether they are our coworkers, friends or
family. It is also important to remember that each person
handles stress differently; trying to understand others and
extend them empathy can help them manage the situation
better. Finally, in these moments, it is vital to stay calm.
Today, technology allows us to remain connected to the
outside world despite social distancing. Besides that, the
Internet is a great tool to look for tutorials on meditation,
breathing and relaxing, which will help us feel less over-
whelmed. In these times of constant change and uncer-
tainty, it is of paramount importance to remain calm,
practice empathy and find a way for this crisis to affect
our day-to-day life as little as possible. It is essential to
reduce anxiety levels and focus on what is paramount,
namely, our health.
The results obtained from the present study have certain
significant implications. First, it contributes to the body of
existing literature as the variable emotional intelligence
has not been studied in relation to COVID-19. Second, if
the authorities want to take overall control of the crisis,
attention must also be given in developing programs for
improving the emotional intelligence skills.
Limitations
The scale about emotional intelligence which has been
adapted in this study is based on self-rating. It might have
resulted in bias. The study was confined to central and
state universities. Private universities, deemed to be uni-
versities, colleges and universities with the potential of
excellence, should be included in the future research. The
study focused on higher education sector only. The scope
of the research could be widened by conducting the study
in other sectors as well.
Conflict of interest
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with
respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this
article.
Funding
The author(s) received no financial support for the research,
authorship, and/or publication of this article.
ORCID iD
Mubashir Majid Baba https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0822-5645
10 International Journal of Social Psychiatry 00(0)
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