Factors Influencing Emotional Intelligence in Adolescents: A Comprehensive Review Across Personality, Brain, and Environment
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.58445/rars.3260Keywords:
psychology, social science, neurology, gender studies, environment, brain, biology, behavior studies, emotional intelligence, adolescent development, personality traitsAbstract
Emotional Intelligence (EI), the ability to perceive, understand, manage, and regulate emotions, plays a vital role in adolescent development, formulating academic achievement, interpersonal relationships, as well as mental health. This literature review analyzes many factors influencing EI in adolescents, underscoring the connection of gender and developmental components. Personality traits within the five-factor model, especially extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism, are shown to correlate strongly with EI, influencing emotional regulation and expressivity. Neural and cognitive research studies have emphasized the inclusion of the prefrontal cortex, amygdala, and anterior cingulate cortex in emotion processing and regulation, showing gender-specific patterns of activation connected to hormonal and developmental differences. Behavioral and socialization processes, guided by cultural expectations, further change emotional expression between boys and girls, with females showing greater levels of empathy and internalization of emotions, while males display greater external regulation and problem-solving tendencies. Environmental and socioeconomic status factors, such as family, emotional climate, school context, and socioeconomic status, also contribute to greater EI development, often limiting gender differences. Connecting these findings through Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological model emphasizes that EI branches from continuous interactions between individual traits and influences across developmental systems. This assessment highlights the necessity for gender-responsive and culturally informed emotional education programs to promote balanced EI growth during the adolescent stage. Future research should include longitudinal and cross-cultural designs to better encapsulate how personality, neurobiology, and environment are connected and shape EI over time.
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