Abstract
The present study explores emotional intelligence and proactive coping as possible protective factors for both a group of paid-professional firefighters (n = 94) and a group of similar comparison participants (n = 91). Each respondent completed the Impact of Events Scale-Revised, Symptom Checklist 90-Revised, Emotional Intelligence Scale, and Proactive Coping Scale. Using an exploratory/liberal Type 1 error rate (α ≤ .10), our results suggested that for firefighters emotional intelligence negatively predicted self-reported traumatic stress (β = −.198), while proactive coping negatively predicted several other mental health symptoms (obsessive-compulsive β = −.192, depression β = −.220, anxiety β = −.295). For the comparison participants, the pattern of results was substantially different from the firefighters in that emotional intelligence negatively predicted several mental health symptoms (interpersonal sensitivity β = − .465, depression β = − .239, anxiety β = −.269, hostility β = −.349) and proactive coping only predicted a lack of psychoticism (β = −.216).
Acknowledgments
Special thanks is extended to all of the firefighters and community members who agreed to participate in this study as well as to the fire chiefs and union executives who provided ongoing support to the research program.
Notes
Note. Regressions with model and variable outcomes ≤.10 are italicized.
Note. Regressions with model and variable outcomes ≤.10 are italicized.