Investigation of emotional intelligence levels and selfefficiency of secondary education students in Bitlis province

The aim of this study is to examine the relationship between emotional intelligence and self-efficacy and to determine the effects of demographic variables on these two concepts. The research was conducted on a sample of 543 volunteer secondary school students. A three-stage method was used as the data collection tool. In the first stage, the Personal Information Form, which includes demographic information such as participants' age, gender, parental education level, and income status, was applied. In the second stage, emotional intelligence levels were measured using the Bar-On Emotional Intelligence Child and Adolescent Form (adapted into Turkish by Köksal, 2007). In the third stage, the General Self-Efficacy Scale, developed by Sherer et al. (1982) and adapted into Turkish by Yıldırım and İlhan (2010), was used to measure the self-efficacy levels of the participants. Necessary permissions were obtained, and face-to-face surveys were conducted with secondary school students, and the data were collected. The data were analyzed using the SPSS statistical software package, and the significance level was accepted as p < 0.05. The obtained data were evaluated using statistical analyses. The results of the study show that emotional intelligence has significant relationships with individuals' self-efficacy levels. It was found that demographic variables such as gender, grade level, and family income status had a limited but significant effect on the sub dimensions of self-efficacy and emotional intelligence. These findings indicate that supporting emotional intelligence skills in educational policies and personal development programs can enhance self-efficacy. The results of the research demonstrate that emotional intelligence carries meaningful relationships with individuals' self-efficacy levels. In light of these findings, it is believed that supporting emotional intelligence and self-efficacy skills in the education system can play an important role in improving individuals' academic and social self-efficacy levels.