The role of emotional intelligence and self-compassion in predicting the sense of humor in psychological counselor candidates

The aim of this study is to examine the predictive value of emotional intelligence, self-compassion and various demographic variables (gender, grade level, the place where they spend most of their life, and the frequency of participation in socio-cultural activities) on sense of humor in psychological counselor candidates. The study group consisted of 388 (302 female, 86 male) psychological counselor candidates. A "Personal Information Form" prepared by the researcher was used to collect personal information about the participants. The "Multidimensional Sense of Humor Scale" was used to determine sense of humor. The "Short Form of the Emotional Intelligence Scale" was used to determine emotional intelligence. The "Self-Compassion Scale" was used to determine self-compassion. SPSS 26 and Jamovi programs were used for the statistical analysis of the data obtained within the scope of the research. A t-test was used to determine whether the dependent variable of the study, sense of humor, differed according to the independent variable, gender. ANOVA and post hoc tests were used to determine whether there were differences depending on the other independent variables, which were grade level, place where they spend most of their life, and frequency of participation in socio-cultural activities. A moderator analysis model was used to determine the relationship between the sense of humor variable and the emotional intelligence and self-compassion variables. As a result of the analyses, it was determined that the variables of place where they spend most of their life and frequency of participation in socio-cultural activities created significant differences on the sense of humor in psychological counselor candidates. In addition, it was observed that the self-compassion variable had a moderating effect on the relationship between the emotional intelligence and sense of humor variables of psychological counselor candidates and the research model was significant.