Keywords:
emotional intelligence
stress management
teachers
primary schools
quality education

  • Abstract

    Emotional intelligence is a key determinant of teachers’ professional development. This study aimed to identify the significant differences in emotional intelligence and stress management scores among primary school teachers in the northern region of Peninsular Malaysia. This quantitative study employed a descriptive research design. Primary school teachers from three types of schools participated in the study. The researchers used stratified random sampling to select 162 teachers from National Primary Schools, National-Type Chinese Primary Schools, and National-Type Tamil Primary Schools. A set of questionnaires was used to collect data on teachers’ emotional intelligence and stress management. Before the actual study, a pilot test was conducted to obtain the reliability of the questionnaire. The questionnaire was distributed to the teachers with the approval of their headmasters. The data from the questionnaire were analysed using the SPSS program for Windows. The findings from the ANOVA test revealed no significant difference in the teachers’ emotional intelligence scores across the three types of schools. However, there was a significant difference in the mean stress management scores of teachers among the three types of schools. Results of the Tukey HSD test indicated that teachers from National-Type Chinese Primary Schools had significantly better stress management compared to teachers from National Primary Schools. However, there was no significant difference in stress management between teachers from National Primary Schools and those from National-Type Tamil Primary Schools, nor between teachers from National-Type Tamil Primary Schools and those from National-Type Chinese Primary Schools. This study may serve as a valuable reference for state education departments and the Ministry of Education (MOE) in efforts to enhance the emotional intelligence and stress management of primary school teachers in Malaysia.

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Nair, S. M., Ping, L. G., Selvam, K. a/l, Mohamad, A. F. B. N., Sharibudeen, N. S. B., & Ramasamy, R. A. P. (2026). Emotional intelligence and stress management of teachers: A comparative study among Malaysian primary schools. Multidisciplinary Science Journal, 8(9), 2026556. https://doi.org/10.31893/multiscience.2026556
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