Emotional intelligence predictors in radiation therapists ID'd

(HealthDay)—Some factors that predict radiation therapists' emotional intelligence (EI) can be addressed, according to a study published online April 23 in the Journal of Medical Radiation Sciences.

Trakis Stami, from the St. George Cancer Care Centre in Kogarah, Australia, and colleagues used surveys to explore the demographic predictors of EI among 205 radiation therapists working in cancer care centers in Australia.

The researchers found that age and level of current employment were predictors of global EI. For the EI emotionality dimension, gender and level of education were significant predictors. For the sociability dimension of EI, levels of employment and level of education were both significant predictors.

"Being a young radiation therapist, female, and having higher levels of employment and higher levels of education were predictors of EI," the authors write. "Given that level of education and level of employment are both amendable demographic factors, strategies to address these factors to reduce the effects of emotional struggle experienced by radiation therapists in their work need to be implemented."