R jopes Research Journal in Organizational Psychology & Educational Studies 1(2) 93-99 R jopes © Emerging Academy Resources (2012) (ISSN: 2276-8475) www.emergingresource.org 93 EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE AND DEMOGRAHIC DIFFERENCES AMONG STUDENTS IN PUBLIC UNIVERSITIES Najib Ahmad Marzuki; Che Su Mustaffa; Zarina Mat Saad Suhaini Muda; Suhanim Abdullah; Wan Bee Che Din College of Arts and Sciences Universiti Utara Malaysia, 06010 Sintok, Kedah, Malaysia Corresponding Author: N ajib A hmad M arzuki ___________________________________________________________________________ ABSTRACT Emotional intelligence is the grassroots of all intelligence dimensions. It provides individuals with the ability to understand one’s own emotions, managing it and hopefully be able to understand other people emotions as well. The purpose of this research is to determine the emotional intelligence level of Malaysian university students from demographic aspects (gender, academic background, place of residence, academic courses and cumulative grade point average (CGPA). The importance of studying emotional intelligence in students is imperative since it indicates other competencies such as communication and interpersonal relations. A total of 3101 final year students from 10 public universities were randomly chosen as samples. The Bar-On Emotional Quotient Inventory: Short (EQ-i:S) by Bar-On (1997) has been utilized for the purpose of measuring emotional intelligence. Scores were categorized into high and low emotional intelligence level. Results were analyzed based on demographic factors such as gender, academic background, place of residence, academic courses and cumulative grade point average (CGPA). It was found that in general, majority of students were quite low in terms of emotional intelligence. Other demographic factors showed varying results. This study implicates that more should be done in higher learning institutions to alleviate and enhance students’ emotional intelligence. © Emerging Academy Resources KEYW ORDS: Emotional Intelligence, Public Universities, Students, Demographics, Skills _________________________________________________________________________________________ INTRODUCTION Emotional intelligence is an important element in enhancing individual’s ability and skills in communication and interpersonal relations. Being excellence in general intelligence (IQ) alone will not guarantee success in life. Psychologist has noted that IQ only contributed about 20 percent of life success while the remaining 80 percent comes from other factors including emotional intelligence (Goleman, 1995). Emotional factors must not be taken lightly in discussing student’s competencies. A study on 448 college students in the United States found that there was a significant difference in terms of academic excellence between those who have low and high emotional intelligence level. Students with high emotional intelligence level were better in academics compared to those with low emotional intelligence level (Swart in Bar-On, 1997). Dulewicz and Higgs (2000) stressed the importance of managing emotion as tools to determine life success. Performance and life success is related to the role of students in higher learning institutions. They have to be ready for entering the job market after graduating. To what extent will they master the skills and competencies are dependent upon the strength of emotional intelligence. Important qualities that should be taken into consideration in emotional intelligence include communicational skills, skills in English and information technology skills. These skills and competencies are related to emotional intelligence aspects such as self-awareness, self- motivation, impulse control, humanistic skills and mood management. Goleman (1995) has introduced the emotional intelligence concept in his book entitled ‘Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ’. Since then, emotional intelligence has been discussed widely in organizations, schools and communities all over the world. In schools, teachers have the main objective of making sure students will excel in life by applying the knowledge taught in class. However, student’s success could not be measured based on academic standing alone but must also be measured based on other aspects such as emotional control (Abisamra, 2000). It is not unlikely that people who gain success in life are those who were actually moderate students in schools or colleges. According to Goleman (2001), all actions and decisions should not be measured based on general intelligence alone but on the components of emotional intelligence.