The Relationship between sense of coherence and emotional intelligence : the case of South African marine officers

Abstract

The study of people's capacity to remain healthy when exposed to constant stressors has long been the focus of research. Stress resistance research has focussed on the adaptive worth of successful coping strategies, certain personality characteristics as well as social support. Two concepts which have gained eminence as contributing to an individual's ability to deal effectively with life's stressors are: (1) Sense of coherence; and (2) Emotional intelligence. The aim of this study was to determine the possible relationship between sense of coherence and emotional intelligence. A once-off cross-sectional survey design was used. The sample population consisted of 54 South African marine officers serving in the merchant navy. The SOC-29 and the BarOn Emotional Intelligence Inventory (BarOn EQ-i) were used as measuring instruments. · Sense of coherence was positively related to emotional intelligence. The results showed that there is a correlation of large effect between total sense of coherence and total emotional intelligence (r = 0,73) in marine officers. The results also showed that there are correlations of large effect between the subscales of the SOC-29 and the BarOn EQi