https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/103769 2026-04-11T03:14:33Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/76529 Title: Editorial [International Journal of Emotional Education, 13(1)] Abstract: The rise of social and emotional education has led to a healthy, engaging debate on the role of the relational and emotional dimensions in education. As a growing body of research evidence has consistently underlined the positive social, emotional and academic effects of social and emotional education (eg. Durlak et al, 2011), various authors (eg. Ecclestone, 2007) have raised a number of concerns pertaining to avoidable hidden dangers which may accompany social-emotional interventions and that implementers need to be alert to, in order to ameliorate negative effects. These include: the potential stigmatizing and pathologizing effects of the focus on emotional vulnerability and individual psychopathology, and the concomitant risks of imposing cultural conformity and misusing interventions for the purposes of social control. In the first paper in this edition, Akamatsu and Gherghel (Japan) contribute to this debate between the ‘bright’ and ‘dark’ side of social and emotional education, positioning empathy as a buffer against the ‘dark side’ of social and emotional education. They argue how the positive impacts of social support, prosocial behaviour, and subjective wellness may be undermined by manipulative or controlling motives unless empathy is given a key role in the delivery of social and emotional education. [excerpt] 2021-04-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/76521 Title: The bright and dark sides of emotional intelligence : implications for educational practice and better understanding of empathy Authors: Akamatsu, Daisuke; Gherghel, Claudia Abstract: In recent years, educational practitioners have become more aware of the importance of cultivating students’ social and emotional skills, in order to facilitate adaptation beyond academic contexts. Emotional intelligence (EI), the ability to regulate one’s own and others’ emotions appropriately, has often been targeted in educational interventions. Previous studies suggest that EI promotes various positive social outcomes such as social support, prosocial behaviour, and subjective well-being. However, a growing body of research has also shown that EI may sometimes lead to antisocial behaviours such as indirect aggression and support for others’ retaliation, but this “darker side” of EI tends to be overlooked. We argue that emotional intelligence without empathy can bring about manipulative or aggressive behaviour, and highlight the need to explore further how EI interacts with other personality traits in determining different social outcomes. This review addresses both the “bright” and the “dark” side of EI, aiming to offer a comprehensive, balanced perspective on its adaptive functions. Based on Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory (RST), our paper proposes that there might be a common mechanism by which EI links to both prosociality and aggression. Our analysis leads to the conclusion that researchers need to elaborate on the motivational mechanism underlying the behaviours of emotionally intelligent individuals, while teachers would be well- advised to pay attention to the motivations that support students’ socially adaptive behaviours. 2021-04-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/76518 Title: Story as advocacy : preservice teachers discover resilience, purpose, and identities of well-being Authors: Farnsworth, Megan Abstract: Utilising narrative inquiry in a teacher preparation programme, the author examined ways that rural preservice teachers explored their resilience through writing stories of overcoming obstacles. The presented research investigated links among resilience, purpose, and advocacy for social justice. Data for this study (16 female, rural students) were collected, analysed, and interpreted through Social Emotional Learning and cultural lenses. Results demonstrate that participants recognised both internal and external supports needed to navigate obstacles. The external resources of extended families and religion helped students to mediate trauma. The internal resources of affirming experiences heightened self-insight and generated new outcomes helped students mediate identity confusion. These resources were needed for agency, which enabled students to challenge power inequities in relationships and expand identities of well-being. Sharing stories of resilience may decrease stigma, increase community resources, and be a vital source of sustaining educators’ mental health. 2021-04-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/76515 Title: Factors that influence emotional disturbance among school bullying bystanders Authors: Adewoye, Segun Emmanuel; du Plessis, Annelize Abstract: This study aimed to ascertain how the four domains of self-debasing cognitive distortion, namely personalisation, catastrophising, overgeneralisation and selective abstraction, could predict or inform emotional disturbance in the reactions of bystanders when witnessing bullying behaviour. We utilised purposive sampling to select 10 bystanders of school bullying for participation in the study and performed convenient sampling to select a research site. We conducted interviews that were recorded on a voice recorder and transcribed thereafter. Qualitative data was analysed through inductive thematic analysis. Our findings revealed that personalisation evoked bystanders’ self-blame and feelings of guilt, catastrophising amplified their anxiety and fear, overgeneralisation induced and exacerbated their negative perception of school safety, and selective abstraction led to indirect co-victimisation. Based on our findings, we recommend that school psychologists, counsellors and behavioural healthcare service providers should teach victims of bullying, especially bystanders, how to recognise, challenge and reappraise negative and unhelpful thoughts and feelings related to their experiences. 2021-04-01T00:00:00Z