title: "Give, but Give until It Hurts": The Modulatory Role of Trait Emotional Intelligence on the Motivation to Help.
abstract: Two studies investigated the effect of trait Emotional Intelligence (trait EI) on people's motivation to help. In Study 1, we developed a new computer-based paradigm that tested participants' motivation to help by measuring their performance on a task in which they could gain a hypothetical amount of money to help children in need. Crucially, we manipulated participants' perceived efficacy by informing them that they had been either able to save the children (positive feedback) or unable to save the children (negative feedback). We measured trait EI using the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire-Short Form (TEIQue-SF) and assessed participants' affective reactions during the experiment using the PANAS-X. Results showed that high and low trait EI participants performed differently after the presentation of feedback on their ineffectiveness in helping others in need. Both groups showed increasing negative affective states during the experiment when the feedback was negative; however, high trait EI participants better managed their affective reactions, modulating the impact of their emotions on performance and maintaining a high level of motivation to help. In Study 2, we used a similar computerized task and tested a control situation to explore the effect of trait EI on participants' behavior when facing failure or success in a scenario unrelated to helping others in need. No effect of feedback emerged on participants' emotional states in the second study. Taken together our results show that trait EI influences the impact of success and failure on behavior only in affect-rich situation like those in which people are asked to help others in need.
authors.affiliation: Marconi Institute for Creativity, MIC, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Sergio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Agnoli
authors.affiliation: Department of Developmental and Socialization Psychology, University of Padova, Padova, Italy.
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pittarello
authors.affiliation: Department of Developmental and Socialization Psychology, University of Padova, Padova, Italy.
authors.forename: Dorina
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hysenbelli
authors.affiliation: Department of Developmental and Socialization Psychology, University of Padova, Padova, Italy; Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Padova, Padova, Italy.
authors.forename: Enrico
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Rubaltelli
mesh_terms: D056348:Emotional Intelligence / Q000502:physiology*; D004644:Emotions / Q000502:physiology; D006379:Helping Behavior; D006801:Humans; D009042:Motivation / Q000502:physiology*; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires