The relationship between emotional intelligence and writing ability of Iranian EFL learners

Success in educational settings is an ever-present wish. For EFL learners, writing ability is a highly favored but neglected skill. As opposed to IQ, Emotional Intelligence (EI) theory is increasingly characterized as contributing to students' ability to improve their achievement. In this study, the body of female BA sophomores of TEFL in Urmia University, (N = 47), within the age range of 18-25, was given a close look in terms of their EI. The students were first given Bar-On's Emotional Quotient Inventory (a Likert scale questionnaire) and were asked to respond to its items based on the relevance of the statements to themselves. Thereafter, the students were given a writing test and the resulting scores were correlated with their EI scores. The scoring of writing tasks was done analytically following pre-specified criteria. The writings were scored once by two raters, yielding an inter-rater reliability of 0. 8. Results obtained through Multiple Regression rendered a positive relationship between writing ability and emotional self-awareness, a subcategory of EI. This can create a room for highlighting emotions in one's educational li