Student Emotional Intelligence and Fieldwork Success: Current Evidence, Practical Implications, and Student Trends in Occupational Therapy Education

In preparation to become a healthcare professional, clinical experiences are one of the most crucial aspects of translating didactic coursework into clinical practice (Brown et al., 2016). It is recognized that students with integrated emotional intelligence (EI) are identified as performing higher at providing individualized, meaningful, and culturally sensitive care (Mckenna and Mellson, 2013). It can be concluded that health care students need integrated emotional intelligence skills in order to be successful on a clinical placement (Brown et al, 2016). This topic was of interest to deeper understand the correlation of EI and success with clinical experiences and how health care curriculums can facilitate growth of EI as students prepare for and enter clinical internships.
Recent Fieldwork Performance Evaluations (FWPE) of both Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA) and Occupational Therapy (OT) students were analyzed to understand themes related to fieldwork success. The evaluation questions related to “professional behaviors” were used as the EI ratings. Our initial, preliminary findings show that OT and OTA students may score higher overall on the evaluation when they score higher in the areas specifically related to EI. Students also showed an initial trend in higher scores on emotional intelligence-related items on their second fieldwork assignment.
In conclusion, students with lower EI skills in a health care program may have increased difficulty during clinical application and therefore require more support from the academic institution and the preceptor. It may be beneficial that an EI curriculum is integrated into health care profession programs so that students have an experiential component in order to ensure successful outcomes. However, it continues to be noted that some students will need direct support in the area of EI skills over time in clinical placements. It is also necessary to ensure that the preceptors are prepared to reflect on EI skill development (Gribble, Ladyshewsky, Parsons, 2019). By better understanding the importance the role EI plays in a successful clinical experience for the student and preceptor, we can reflect on various ways these skills can be supported. Whether this be through intentionally addressing EI in education, providing additional support for the preceptor and/or identifying further research needed in the area of EI and its correlation to successful clinical performance.