The Relationship between Emotional Intelligence and Nicotine Dependence in Lebanese Adults
Date
2017-03-07Author
Khalil, R Bou
Chaar, A
Bou-Orm, Ibrahim
Aoun-Bacha, Z
Richa, S
Metadata
Show full item recordCitation
Bou Khalil, R., Chaar, A., Bou-Orm, I., Aoun-Bacha, Z. and Richa, S. (2017) ‘The relationship between emotional intelligence and nicotine dependence in Lebanese adults’, Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 49(3), pp. 252–257. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/02791072.2017.1292435.
Abstract
Emotional intelligence (EI) is known to be a risk factor for several types of addiction. The purpose of this study was to investigate, in a cross-sectional design, the presence of a relationship between the level of EI and nicotine dependence in a sample of Lebanese adults. A self-administered questionnaire was used to determine the sociodemographic characteristics, the level of nicotine dependence, and the level of EI in a sample of 142 Lebanese participants from the community. The sample was 51.4% women, with a mean age of 33.9 years. There was no difference in EI level between smokers and non-smokers (p = 0.66), and there were no associations between EI level and the level of nicotine dependence (p = 0.59). However, EI was positively correlated with age (p = 0.023). Due to the fact that smokers have been dependent on nicotine for many years and that EI is known to increase with age, findings suggest that low EI may be a risk factor for initiation, rather than maintenance, of nicotine dependence.