| To manage the traumatic experiences of patients, physicians need highly developed skills in stress management and emotional regulation. Without these skills, physicians may suffer from a form of stress called compassion fatigue. The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine the relationship between compassion fatigue (CF) as defined by Charles Figley, and emotional intelligence (EI) as defined by Mayer, Salovey, and Caruso, within a population of physicians. Eighty-five physicians participated and were given 2 assessments and a demographic questionnaire. The dependent variable, CF, was measured using the Secondary Trauma Score from the Professional Quality of Life Scale (ProQOL), while the independent variable, EI, was measured using 5 scores from the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT: total, perceive, use, understand, and manage scores). Linear regression was used to test the hypotheses associated with the 5 research questions presented for this study. All results were nonsignificant. All participants scored low on CF resulting in no significant pattern on the scatterplot when combining CF with EI. As a group, these physicians seemed to manage their negative stress well as demonstrated by their low CF scores. This research is important for social change as it was the first time these constructs were studied together within this population of physicians, thus raising awareness about stress management and emotional regulation. Overall, this information might assist in modifying a professional culture where physicians are seen as being unshakable and that expression of emotions are potentially seen as a weakness. Further research could incorporate different sampling techniques to secure a broader range of CF scores from participants. In doing so, the results might be more definitive in determining if a correlation exists between CF and EI. |
