Learning and Individual Differences

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Learning and Individual Differences 22 (2012) 83–91

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Learning and Individual Differences


journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/lindif

Ability emotional intelligence, trait emotional intelligence, and academic success in


British secondary schools: A 5 year longitudinal study
Pamela Qualter a,⁎, Kathryn.J. Gardner a, Debbie.J. Pope b, Jane.M. Hutchinson a, Helen E. Whiteley b
a
School of Psychology, University of Central Lancashire, Preston, Lancashire, UK
b
Department of Social and Psychological Science, Edge Hill University, Ormskirk, Lancashire, UK

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: This study examines the long-term effects of ability- and trait EI on academic performance for British adoles-
Received 11 April 2011 cents. The sample comprised 413 students from three secondary schools in the North-West of England. Stu-
Received in revised form 3 October 2011 dents completed tests of ability EI, trait EI, personality, and cognitive ability in Year 7 (mean age = 11 years
Accepted 11 November 2011
2 months). Performance data at the end of Year 11 (mean age = 15 years 10 months) were collected. Struc-
tural Equation Modelling examined the longitudinal relationships between latent variables of these con-
Keywords:
Emotional intelligence structs. Results show that the importance of ability EI resides in the fact that it moderates the effect of
Emotional self-efficacy cognitive ability on performance in Year 11. Trait EI has a direct effect on Year 11 performance for boys
Emotions only. This suggests that initiatives that help to develop ability EI and increase trait EI offer educators oppor-
Academic success tunities to improve educational achievement.
Academic achievement © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Adolescence
Prospective study

1. Introduction 1.1. The ability and trait EI distinction

Emotional skills support both social and cognitive development in EI has been conceptualised as an emotion-related cognitive ability
young children (see Denham, 2007, for review). Emotional knowl- involving the ability to perceive, use, understand and regulate emo-
edge also predicts academic competence and task orientation in mid- tion (Mayer & Salovey, 1997; Mayer, Salovey, & Caruso, 2004). Others
dle childhood, even when controlling for verbal ability (Izard, 2002; have defined EI as a constellation of emotion-related self-perceptions
Izard et al., 2001). Furthermore, poor emotional competence amongst at the lower levels of personality hierarchies (Petrides, Furnham, &
adolescents results in school difficulties associated with subsequent Mavroveli, 2007; Petrides, Pita, & Kokkinaki, 2007). These two per-
academic underachievement, such as school drop-out and persistent spectives have been termed ability EI and trait EI, respectively. This
antisocial behaviour (Gagnon, Craig, Tremblay, Zhou, & Vitaro, 1995; distinction between ability- and trait EI is well-supported in the
Haapasalo & Tremblay, 1994; Kochenderfer & Ladd, 1996). In keeping adult literature, with meta analyses (Joseph & Newman, 2010; Van
with this notion that emotional functioning is linked to academic per- Rooy, Viswesvaran, & Pluta, 2005) showing non-significant associa-
formance and success, we investigated associations between ability- tions between measures of trait EI and intelligence and a positive, al-
and trait-emotional intelligence (EI) and academic achievement though still relatively weak, association between ability EI and
amongst British adolescents in mainstream education. A prospective measures of crystallised intelligence and verbal IQ. Furthermore,
design determined whether ability and trait EI at transfer into British meta-analysis data also support a fairly moderate association be-
secondary school (aged 11–12: Year 7) predict academic performance tween trait EI, but not ability EI, and personality facets (Van Rooy et
at age 16 (Year 11). Such work provides comprehensive information al., 2005). In addition, Joseph and Newman (2010) found the correla-
about how reasoning and problem-solving in the emotion domain tion between self-report (trait) EI measures and performance-based
(ability EI) and individual self-perceptions in emotional capabilities (ability) EI measures to be low enough to suggest two distinct con-
(trait EI) predict academic success in adolescence. structs, which supports evidence from earlier meta-analyses (O'Boyle,
Humphrey, Pollack, Hawver, & Story, 2010; Van Rooy et al., 2005). Re-
cent work also shows that trait- and ability EI can be validly measured
in middle and late childhood (e.g., Barlow, Qualter, & Stylianou, 2010;
⁎ Corresponding author at: School of Psychology, University of Central Lancashire,
Mavroveli, Petrides, Sangareau, & Furnham, 2009; Rivers, Brackett, &
UK, PR1 2HE. Tel.: + 44 01772 893877. Salovey, 2008), and are distinct from one another (Qualter, Barlow, &
E-mail address: PQualter@uclan.ac.uk (P. Qualter). Stylianou, 2011).

1041-6080/$ – see front matter © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.lindif.2011.11.007
84 P. Qualter et al. / Learning and Individual Differences 22 (2012) 83–91

1.2. The significance of ability and trait EI in predicting academic success could lead to poor academic performance because it creates a nega-
tive self-concept that begins to undermine the student's academic
Ability EI theory provides a framework within which to study the motivation. In contrast, students who say they manage stress well,
role of emotions in predicting academic performance (Mayer, Salovey, but have low IQ are able to draw upon perceived emotion manage-
& Caruso, 2008). Successful academic performance includes being able ment resources in order to successfully recover from falling grades,
to identify emotional stressors (Lyons & Schneider, 2005), a process or reconcile continuous poor performance, and use appropriate emo-
which ability EI can facilitate by providing emotion-related knowledge tion management strategies in the lead-up to examinations. Current-
and capabilities such as emotion perception and emotional understand- ly, research has investigated how trait EI moderates the relationship
ing. Further, skills such as effective management of one's emotions fos- between IQ and academic performance (Petrides et al., 2004), but
ter emotional resilience (e.g., see Fabes & Eisenberg, 1997), allowing ability EI is also likely to work in the same way; both trait- and ability
individuals to adapt to stressful situations or crises, which, if unresolved, EI will inform the behavioural response chosen to the stressor. Thus,
may hinder their academic performance. both types of EI may be important in predicting academic perfor-
Trait EI may also be important for academic performance and suc- mance because they act as moderators of cognitive ability. An impor-
cess, primarily because emotional self-efficacy is an important aspect tant step in extending existing research is a prospective examination
of this construct (Kirk, Schutte, & Hine, 2008; Petrides, Frederickson, of both ability- and trait EI and their interaction with cognitive ability
& Furnham, 2004; Petrides & Furnham, 2003; Petrides, Furnham, & in predicting academic performance.
Mavroveli, 2007; Petrides, Pita, & Kokkinaki, 2007; Petrides,
Sangareau, Furnham, & Frederickson, 2006; Qualter et al., 2011). 1.3. Other predictors of academic success: the importance of cognitive
Our argument builds on previous work suggesting an association be- ability, gender and personality
tween beliefs about ability to perform a behaviour and actually per-
forming the behaviour (e.g. Bandura, 1986; Crick & Dodge, 1994; The overall aim of this study is to determine whether ability EI and
Wigfield & Eccles, 1992). We argue that perceived emotional self- trait EI can predict academic performance when other important non-
efficacy (an aspect of trait EI) plays an important role in emotion cognitive factors (personality) and cognitive ability (IQ) are controlled.
self-management in education situations: it affects actions not only Given previous literature, within our model of academic performance,
directly, but also through its influence on other decisions that might we expect cognitive ability to predict academic performance very
impact on academic performance (Bandura, 1999, 2001). Thus, with- well. Given findings from previous studies showing correlations be-
in the context of education, Bandura argues that beliefs of one's emo- tween intelligence test scores and overall exam results, r = .49 to .69
tional self efficacy are likely to influence what self-regulative (Deary, Strand, Smith, & Fernandes, 2007; Furnham, Monsen, &
standards people adopt during learning activities, including revision; Ahmetoglu, 2009), we expect cognitive ability to have the most impact
whether they think in an enabling or debilitating manner when con- on academic achievement within our model.
sidering their academic performance; how much effort they invest in In addition to cognitive ability, personality has also been shown to
any one particular learning or revision strategy; how they persevere be important in predicting academic performance, and Eysenck's
in the face of academic difficulties; how resilient they are to academic model of personality has proven useful. Empirical investigation shows
stressors; how vulnerable they are to non-academic stressors; and that neuroticism (characterised by low self esteem, depression, shyness,
choices they make in non-academic aspects of their lives. In addition, moodiness, and anxiety) is a negative predictor of academic perfor-
self-efficacy theory suggests that beliefs about earlier successes and mance, particularly when students are assessed by final examinations
failures in affect regulation in response to academic stressors will in- (Chamorro-Premuzic & Furnham, 2003; Laidra, Pullman, & Allik,
fluence future emotional responses and emotion management in sim- 2007). Psychoticism (aggressive, tough-minded, apathetic, antisocial,
ilar academic situations (e.g. Parsons & Ruble, 1977). creative, impulsive, and reckless: Pervin, 1993) has also been shown
With regard to empirical evidence, concurrent and one-year stud- to be a negative predictor of academic success (Goh & Moore, 1987;
ies show that ability EI is important within the context of academic Maqsud, 1993; McLaughlin, Moutray, & Muldoon, 2007; Petrides,
success, even after personality and academic intelligence are statisti- Chamorro-Premuzic, Frederickson, & Furnham, 2005; Sanchez-Marin,
cally controlled (Gil-Olarte Marquez, Martin, & Brackett, 2006; Lyons Rejano-Infante, & Rodriguez-Troyano, 2001). In addition, extraversion
& Schneider, 2005; Mestre, Guil, Lopes, Salovey, & Gil-Olarte, 2006). (sensation-seeking, assertive, and sociable) is associated with academic
Trait EI is also an important factor in the academic achievement of success, although there is evidence that this relationship changes from
university and high school students (e.g., Austin, Evans, Goldwater, childhood to adolescence (Wolf & Ackerman, 2005). Specifically, there
& Potter, 2005; Downey, Mountstephen, Lloyd, Hansen, & Stough, is a change from a positive relationship between extraversion and per-
2008; Parker, Summerfeldt, Hogan, & Majeski, 2004; Parker et al., formance between ages 7 and 13 to a negative relationship when the
2004; Vidal Rodeiro, Bell, & Emery, 2009). In addition, it is an impor- child reaches 14.
tant predictor when academic success is conceptualised as dropout Another important variable to consider is gender. Boys typically per-
versus completion of Year 1 at university (Parker, Hogan, form less well on school assessments than girls, despite similar scores
Easterbrook, Oke, & Wood, 2006; Qualter, Whiteley, Morley, & on cognitive tasks (e.g. Deary et al., 2007; Ferguson & Horwood, 1997;
Dudiak, 2009), and exclusions versus non-exclusions in secondary Mestre et al., 2006). This may arise due to the impact of EI on the aca-
school (Petrides et al., 2004; Qualter, 2008; Qualter, Whiteley, demic performance. Females typically score comparatively higher on
Hutchinson, & Pope, 2007). EI tests compared to boys (e.g., Goldenberg, Matheson, & Mantler,
Whilst there is evidence that trait EI relates to academic perfor- 2006; Schneider, Lyons, & Williams, 2005), and girls may be able to uti-
mance, several studies report no significant association (Barchard, lise these EI skills in a way that facilitates performance (e.g., via stress
2003; Bastian, Burns, & Nettelbeck, 2005; Newsome, Day, & Catano, management). To explore the possibility that EI impacts on perfor-
2000; Van Der Zee, Thijs, & Schakel, 2002). Petrides et al. (2004) mance for girls and not boys, we examined the same model separately
argue that whilst trait EI may not be associated directly with academ- across boys and girls.
ic achievement, it moderates the relationship between cognitive abil-
ity and academic performance; because they experience more stress 1.4. Rationale and aims of the study
during their studies, adolescents with low IQ benefit academically if
they have appropriate self-perceived emotional skills. If we relate The overall aim of this prospective study is to establish the direct
this back to notions of emotional self-efficacy, an example will help: and moderating effects of both ability- and trait EI in predicting aca-
lower IQ for a student who says they cannot manage stress well demic performance. Currently, there exist only concurrent or short-
P. Qualter et al. / Learning and Individual Differences 22 (2012) 83–91 85

term (1–2 year) longitudinal studies that examine the role of ability- (perceive), the child must identify the emotions expressed by a series
and trait EI in academic achievement. Further, previous research has of faces; Section B (facilitate) includes a set of vignettes and tasks
only examined how trait EI moderates the relationship between IQ which assess whether the child understands how different emotions
and academic performance (Petrides et al., 2004), but there is no in- impact on behaviour and decision making; Section C (understand) in-
vestigation of whether ability EI may work in the same way. The cludes vignettes and requires that the child choose the emotion a pro-
aims of the current study were (1) to determine whether ability- tagonist is feeling; and Section D (manage) includes vignettes and
and trait EI at transfer into secondary school are associated with aca- requires the child to choose how helpful certain strategies may be
demic performance five years later, and (2) to investigate whether in managing certain emotions. Internal consistency scores of the
trait and ability EI moderate the relationship between cognitive abil- MSCEIT-Yv are provided in the manual for the four branches, with
ity and academic performance. split half reliabilities ranging from α = .67 (Section A: Perceiving
emotion) to .86 (Section C: Understanding emotions); the overall
1.5. Impact of the study measure α = .91. Internal consistency scores are currently not avail-
able from the test publisher for male and females separately.
The findings of this research have important theoretical and prac-
tical implications for researchers and educationalists. This research 2.2.3. Personality
expands the knowledge base concerning the relationship between The Revised Junior Eysenck Personality Questionnaire: Short-Form
two types of EI – ability and trait – and provides new information re- (JEPQR-S; Corulla, 1990). The self-report scale measures the personal-
garding (1) their relationship in childhood, (2) their incremental va- ity dimensions of psychoticism, neuroticism, and extraversion. A
lidity with regard to the prediction of academic performance beyond fourth factor, the lie scale, was not included in the current study. In-
cognitive ability and personality, and (3) the moderating role played dividuals respond to items using a true/false format. Participants re-
by both trait- and ability EI in the association between cognitive abil- spond to 48 items using a dichotomous scale (True/False). For this
ity and academic performance. It also addresses a gap in the literature sample, the internal consistencies for Psychoticism, Extraversion,
by examining these relationships for boys and girls separately. The and Neuroticism were α = .78, .93, and .84 respectively for girls, and
findings provide educationalists with further examination of whether α = .73, .88, and .85 for boys.
ability- and trait EI are important to academic success, when other
important variables (cognitive ability and personality) are controlled.
2.2.4. Cognitive ability
Such an analysis has implications for government policy linked to the
The CAT (Cognitive Ability Test) is the most widely used test of
teaching of emotional skills.
reasoning abilities in UK schools. The data reported here relate to
the CAT third edition (CAT3). It has 10 separate subtests, which are
2. Method
aggregated into three batteries of tests, providing standardised mea-
sures of verbal, quantitative, and nonverbal reasoning abilities.
2.1. Sample

2.2.5. Academic performance in Year 11


413 students (199 males; 214 females) took part in the study dur-
With the exception of a small number of children with severe
ing Year 7 at transfer into secondary school. Performance data (GCSE)
learning difficulties, most pupils in England sit national examinations
were collected in Year 11 for 411 children: two males had moved out
(General Certificate of Education: GCSE) at the end of compulsory ed-
of Lancashire between Year 7 and Year 11.
ucation (approximately 16 years old). GCSEs are offered in a wide
range of subjects, but all pupils in the current sample took English
2.2. Measures
Language, English Literature, Maths, and Science. These are graded
from A* down to G (and U for ungraded). For the purposes of our
2.2.1. Trait EI
study, grades for each subject were scored from 9 to 0 respectively.
The Bar-On EQ-i:Yv (Bar-On, 1997; Bar-On & Parker, 2000) is a self-
Where participants took Double Science, a mean was calculated.
report measure that assesses the level of trait EI in children and adoles-
cents. It consists of 60 items with four main subscales: interpersonal, in-
trapersonal, stress management, and adaptability. Example questions 2.3. Procedure
include: ‘It is easy for me to tell people how I feel’ (intrapersonal), ‘I
am good at understanding the way other people feel’ (interpersonal), During the first eight weeks of transfer to secondary school, 413
‘I can stay calm when I am upset’ (stress management), ‘I can under- pupils from four secondary schools in Lancashire (UK) completed
stand hard questions’ (adaptability). Children are asked to rate each the EI and personality measures during three sessions. Each session
statement using a rating scale from 1 (very seldom true of me) to 4 was group administered with Session 1 (completion of trait EI mea-
(very often true of me). Higher scores on each dimension indicate higher sure and personality questionnaire) taking 15 min. The MSCEIT-Yv
trait EI. For this sample, internal consistency scores for the subscales (ability EI measure) was completed over two sessions, which each
were reasonable for girls and boys respectively: α = .64 and .62 (intra- took approximately 60 min. Cognitive ability and academic perfor-
personal), .82 and .75 (stress management), .79 and .74 (adaptability) mance indicators were collected from school databases at the start
and .82 and .78 (interpersonal). of Year 7 and at the end of Year 11 respectively. Parents gave permis-
sion for us to access this academic information.
2.2.2. Ability EI
The MSCEIT-Yv is the youth version of the MSCEIT and is designed 2.4. Analyses plan
for pre-adolescents and adolescents (Mayer, Salovey, & Caruso,
2005). The scale uses 101 items (of which 97 are scored) to measure First, we established the bivariate associations between the mani-
how well children perform tasks and solve emotional problems. fest variables that would later make up the latent variables of ability
Multi-Health Systems, the test distributor, using expert norms, scored EI, trait EI, and cognitive ability, and academic performance (GCSE)
the data. This instrument yields a single overall performance score, in in the Structural Equation Model (SEM). The associations between
addition to the two area scores for emotional experience and emo- neuroticism, extraversion, and psychoticism with these manifest vari-
tional reasoning. These area scores are further elaborated to encom- ables were also calculated. Correlational analyses were conducted for
pass the four central areas of emotional intelligence: In Section A boys and girls separately.
86 P. Qualter et al. / Learning and Individual Differences 22 (2012) 83–91

Following this, we determined the measurement models for the Table 1


latent variables of ability EI, trait EI, cognitive ability, and GCSE per- Means, standard deviations (SDs), and gender differences for study variables (all indi-
cator variables of latent variables later used in the SEM and the variables of neuroti-
formance that we would later use in the SEM to test the longitudinal cism, extraversion, and psychoticism).
association between these variables. Latent variables were used in the
full SEM model as they are free of random measurement error be- Boys mean (SD) Girls mean (SD) t d

cause all variability in the manifest variables that is not associated N= 199 214
with the latent variables is excluded as error variance, thus making Cognitive ability (CAT)
the test more powerful. We created a latent variable of GCSE Perfor- - CATv 5.74 (1.86) 6.13 (1.64) 2.08 .21⁎
mance from the manifest variables of Maths, English Language, En- - CATq 5.60 (1.92) 5.82 (1.52) 1.28 .13
glish Literature, and Science grades. Latent variables of Cognitive - CATnv 5.65 (1.88) 5.79 (1.57) .82 .08
Ability EI (MSCEIT-YV)
ability (verbal, quantitative, and nonverbal reasoning abilities), trait - Section A [perceive] 105.88 (12.86) 108.93 (9.87) 2.69 .27⁎⁎⁎
EI (interpersonal, intrapersonal, stress management, and adaptability) - Section B [facilitative] 107.06 (12.82) 111.12 (9.76) 3.60 .36⁎⁎⁎
and ability EI (perceive, facilitate, understand, and manage emotion) - Section C [understand] 100.92 (25.61) 106.61 (9.85) 4.39 .44⁎⁎⁎
were also created. - Section D [manage] 88.61 (11.45) 96.48 (9.02) 7.71 .77⁎⁎⁎
Trait EI (EQi-YV)
Before calculating the full SEM, the fit indices and factor loading of
- Intrapersonal 13.87 (3.47) 15.36 (3.85) 4.13 .41⁎⁎⁎
these latent variables were considered. These are calculated to ascer- - Interpersonal 36.66 (5.09) 40.25 (4.52) 7.55 .75⁎⁎⁎
tain that misfit in the full SEM model is not due to problems in the - Stress management 33.19 (5.13) 33.61 (5.94) .77 .08
measurement model of each latent variable. Fit indices were con- - Adaptability 29.43 (6.71) 28.26 (5.28) 1.96 .19
sulted to assess model fit, which included the root mean square Neuroticism 10.63 (4.74) 11.49 (4.35) 2.63 .26⁎⁎
Extroversion 19.79 (3.43) 19.43 (3.67) 1.03 .10
error of approximation (RMSEA) and the Comparative Fit Index Psychoticism 3.88 (3.00) 3.73 (2.88) 1.19 .12
(CFI). Hu and Bentler (1999) suggested RMSEA b .06, and CFI > .95 as GSCE Performance
cut-off criteria indicative of good fit. More liberal criteria indicative - Maths 5.03 (1.36) 5.19 (1.14) 1.29 .13
of moderate levels of model fit are RMSEA b .08 and CFI > .90 (Marsh, - English Language 4.68 (1.13) 5.25 (1.14) 5.14 .51⁎⁎⁎
- English Literature 5.02 (1.16) 5.42 (1.12) 3.56 .35⁎⁎⁎
Hau, & Wen, 2004).The measurement models were calculated in
- Science 4.82 (1.48) 4.90 (1.33) .58 .06
MPlus 5.1. Measurement models for each latent variable provided an
⁎⁎ p b .01.
appropriate fit to the data using the cut-off criteria proposed by
⁎⁎⁎ p b .001.
Marsh, Hau, et al., which meant they could be included in the full SEM.
The full SEM examined the structural links between the latent var-
iables of cognitive ability, ability EI, and trait EI taken when the chil-
dren were in Year 7 (at transfer into secondary school) and the variables presented no problems of normality, with skewness ranging
academic performance (GCSE) latent variable in Year 11. Based on from −.70 to .99 and kurtosis ranging from −.41 to .90.
the idea that EI might moderate the effect of cognitive ability on aca- Table 1 shows differences between girls and boys on these vari-
demic performance, we created latent interaction terms for ability ables. Gender differences were observed for verbal cognitive ability
EI × cognitive ability and trait EI × cognitive ability, which were also (CATv), all dimensions of ability EI, two aspects of trait EI (intraper-
entered into the model. Initial model testing followed an uncon- sonal and interpersonal), and GCSE performance for English Language
strained approach for creating and testing the interaction terms and English Literature: in each case, girls scored significantly higher
(Marsh, Wen, & Hau, 2004), but both interaction terms (ability than boys. Girls also reported significantly more neuroticism than
EI × cognitive ability and trait EI × cognitive ability) showed high cor- boys. There were no gender differences on all other variables.
relations with cognitive ability. Thus, in the final model, we used Table 2 shows the correlations between all study variables for
Little, Bovaird, and Widaman's (2006) 1 approach to create the two in- males and females. For girls, GCSE performance was associated with
teraction terms (ability EI × cognitive ability and trait EI × cognitive all aspects of cognitive ability and ability EI. For boys, GCSE perfor-
ability). For each latent interaction term, every possible product indi- mance was associated with these same variables, but aspects of trait
cator is created and then regressed onto its own set of constituent EI (interpersonal, stress management and adaptability) were also re-
non-product indicators; the resulting residuals represent the interac- lated. GCSE performance for boys and girls was not correlated with
tion terms, which are uncorrelated with the corresponding set of any of the personality variables.
non-product indicators. These residualized products become the As shown in Table 2, correlational analyses revealed significant as-
manifest variables of the corresponding interaction latent factor. sociations between certain aspects of ability EI and cognitive ability
Within this approach, error covariances are specified between pairs for girls and boys. Ability EI and trait EI were also moderately corre-
of residualized product indicators based on common non-product in- lated. Neuroticism was associated with certain aspects of trait EI for
dicators. This SEM was conducted in MPlus 5.1. Testing was con- girls, but not boys. Further, the manifest variables that would later
ducted for boys and girls separately. make up particular latent variables were highly correlated.

3. Results 3.2. Measurement models of the latent variables

3.1. Means and correlations Calculation of measurement models for each latent variable, in-
cluding fit indices and factor loadings, for boys and girls separately,
Before conducting the analyses, we examined the data for univar- can be found in Table 3. Given that fit indices and factor loadings for
iate and multivariate outlying cases using the procedure devised by each latent variable revealed moderate levels of model fit, we
Tabachnick and Fidell (2001); no participants were detected as out- moved on to calculate the full SEM model.
liers. Table 1 presents the means and variances for the manifest vari-
ables that are later used to create latent variables of cognitive ability, 3.3. Structural Equation Model (SEM)
ability EI, trait EI and GCSE performance. The variables of neuroticism,
extraversion, and psychoticism are also included in this table. The SEM was used to explore structural links between EI and academic
performance. In the full SEM, we allowed correlations between the
1
The Marsh, Wen and Hau (2004) and Little et al. (2006) methods yielded similar following pairs of latent variables: (a) ability EI and trait EI, and (b)
parameter estimates. ability EI and cognitive ability. Latent interaction terms for ability
P. Qualter et al. / Learning and Individual Differences 22 (2012) 83–91 87

Table 2
Zero-order correlations between all study variables, including manifest variables of each latent factor.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

Cognitive ability (CAT)


1. CATv – .66⁎⁎ .68⁎⁎ .28⁎⁎ .27⁎⁎ .43⁎⁎ .44⁎⁎ −.09 .15⁎ .19⁎⁎ .24⁎ .02 .16⁎⁎ −.07 .69⁎⁎ .69⁎⁎ .58⁎⁎ .71⁎⁎
2. CATq .64⁎⁎ – .71⁎⁎ .05 .34⁎⁎ .37⁎⁎ .27⁎⁎ −.07 .13 .11 .22⁎ .03 .06 −.05 .73⁎⁎ .61⁎⁎ .48⁎⁎ .67⁎⁎
3. CATnv .70⁎⁎ .71⁎⁎ – .22⁎⁎ .38⁎⁎ .44⁎⁎ .36⁎⁎ −.11 .06 .09 .16⁎ .11 .13 −.13 .74⁎⁎ .58⁎⁎ .44⁎⁎ .66⁎⁎

Ability EI (MSCEIT-YV)
4. Perceive .26⁎⁎ .05 .15⁎ – .19⁎⁎ .36⁎⁎ .29⁎⁎ –.02 .25⁎⁎ –.03 .09 –.04 .13 –.16⁎ .15⁎ .22⁎⁎ .24⁎⁎ .26⁎⁎
5. Facilitative .18⁎⁎ .07 .16⁎ .25⁎⁎ – .51⁎⁎ .33⁎⁎ −.10 .05 −.04 .16⁎ −.08 .21⁎ .15⁎ .35⁎⁎ .34⁎⁎ .23⁎⁎ .30⁎⁎
6. Understand .31⁎⁎ .19⁎⁎ .23⁎⁎ .35⁎⁎ .47⁎⁎ – .67⁎⁎ −.11 .16⁎ .09 .06 .01 .31⁎ −.04 .39⁎⁎ .54⁎⁎ .43⁎⁎ .44⁎⁎
7. Manage .33⁎⁎ .23⁎⁎ .24⁎⁎ .28⁎⁎ .41⁎⁎ .46⁎⁎ – −.15⁎ .17⁎ .24⁎⁎ .02 −.02 .21⁎ .06 .31⁎⁎ .51⁎⁎ .36⁎⁎ .39⁎⁎

Trait EI (EQi-YV)
8. Intrapersonal −.08 −.06 −.11 .11 −.01 −.04 −.03 – .13 .09 .30⁎⁎ .002 −.01 −.05 .04 −.04 −.03 −.03
9. Interpersonal .28⁎⁎ .09 .19⁎⁎ .10 .29⁎⁎ .17⁎ .16⁎ .26⁎⁎ – .26⁎⁎ .43⁎⁎ −.04 −.03 .03 .16⁎ .16⁎ .21⁎⁎ .14⁎
10. Stress Management .07 .13⁎ .13 .17⁎ .08 –.05 .10 .37⁎⁎ .31⁎⁎ – .15⁎ .08 –.04 –.06 .22⁎⁎ .25⁎⁎ .16⁎ .26⁎⁎
11. Adaptability .12 .25⁎⁎ .11 .03 .14⁎ .08 .08 .19⁎⁎ .29⁎⁎ .18⁎⁎ – .03 −.10 −.11 .25⁎ .23⁎ .30⁎⁎ .26⁎⁎
12. Neuroticism .01 .23⁎⁎ −.02 −.03 −.02 .04 .07 .30⁎⁎ .19⁎⁎ .14⁎ .09 – .18⁎ .11 .09 −.03 .03 .11
13. Extraversion −.50 −.07 −.02 −.16⁎ .07 −.98 −.09 .05 .08 .09 .20⁎⁎ −.32⁎⁎ – .14⁎ .08 .20⁎⁎ −.06 .05
14. Psychoticism .07 −.01 .01 −.04 .09 −.02 −.18⁎ .02 −.11 .06 .09 −.002 .16⁎ – −.11 −.03 −.09 −.14

GCSE Performance
15. Maths .45⁎⁎ .42⁎⁎ .49⁎⁎ .02 .23⁎⁎ .12 .12 .17⁎ .03 .07 .12 .02 .02 −.07 – .77⁎⁎ .62⁎⁎ .84⁎⁎
16. English Language .55⁎⁎ .30⁎⁎ .38⁎⁎ .11 .22⁎⁎ .16⁎ .22⁎⁎ .13 .23⁎⁎ .01 .10 −.07 −.12 −.03 .69⁎⁎ – .72⁎⁎ .82⁎⁎
17. English Literature .49⁎⁎ .26⁎⁎ .36⁎⁎ .13⁎ .22⁎⁎ .17⁎ .22⁎⁎ .01 .01 .09 .26⁎⁎ −.14⁎ .05 .04 .61⁎⁎ .83⁎⁎ – .73⁎⁎
18. Science .55⁎⁎ .39⁎⁎ .50⁎⁎ .15⁎ .27⁎⁎ .28⁎ .25⁎⁎ .11⁎⁎ .10 .07 .12 .03 −.02 −.09 .84⁎⁎ .75⁎⁎ .68⁎⁎ –

Note. Correlations for boys appear in upper triangle and correlations for girls are in the lower triangle.
⁎ p b .01.
⁎⁎ p b .001.

EI × cognitive ability and trait EI × cognitive ability were also included p b .001, CFI = .87, RMSEA = .11) and girls (χ 2 (df = 675) = 2831.96,
in the model following the approach recommended by Little et al. p b .001, CFI = .62, RMSEA = .12). In each case, we examined modifica-
(2006). We examined the model for boys and girls separately. Based tion indices to determine the removal of paths (Bentler, 1990; Bryne,
on the original theorising and the correlational analyses, the initial 2010). This examination suggested the removal of the following paths
SEM includes the following assumptions: (a) the latent variable of (1) trait EI × cognitive ability interaction term for the model for boys,
cognitive ability at Year 7 will predict academic performance in and (2) trait EI and the interaction term trait EI x cognitive ability for
Year 11, (b) the latent variables of ability- and trait EI at Year 7 will the model for girls. Modification indices did not suggest improvement
have direct effects on future academic performance at Year 11 and to the model by inclusion of additional paths. We made changes to
(c) the latent variables representing the cognitive ability × ability EI the models based on these indices and improved the overall model
and cognitive ability × trait EI interaction terms will predict academic fit (Boys: χ 2 (df = 310) = 961.66, p b .001, CFI = .97, RMSEA = .09;
performance in Year 11, demonstrating the moderating effects of abil- Girls: χ 2 (df = 253) = 3289 p = .01, CFI = .90, RMSEA = .10). The
ity EI and trait EI on future academic performance. final model specifications for boys and girls, with significant path
SEM analyses of the full model suggested poor fit of the specified co-efficients are detailed in Figs. 1 and 2. The factor loadings for the
model to the current data for boys (χ 2 (df = 675) = 2410.89, latent variables are not included in these figures for ease of

Table 3
Measurement models (factor loadings and fit indices) for each latent variable to be used in the full SEM model for boys and girls separately.

Boys (N = 199) Girls (N = 214)

Factor loadings χ2 df RMSEA CFI Factor loadings χ2 df RMSEA CFI

Cognitive ability (CAT) CATv = .79 210.48⁎ 6 .04 .98 CATnv = .77 301.29⁎ 6 .08 .95
CATq = .80 CATq = .81
CATnv = .88 CATnv = .88
Ability EI (MSCEIT-Yv) Section A = .57 .71 2 .04 .95 Section A = .54 .77 2 .06 .92
Section B = .61 Section B = .63
Section C = .89 Section C = .76
Section D = .69 Section D = .64
Trait EI (EQi-YV) Intrapersonal = .65 7.58⁎ 2 .09 .92 Intrapersonal = .65 5.08 2 .08 .95
Interpersonal = .59 Interpersonal = .53
Stress manage = .57 Stress manage = .61
Adaptability = .73 Adaptability = .79
GSCE Performance Maths = .87 11.70⁎ 2 .08 .99 Maths = .84 11.58⁎ 2 .07 .98
English Language = .88 English Language = .88
English lit. = .84 English lit. = .84
Science = .95 Science = .90

† Standardised estimates; CFA for each latent variable conducted in MPlus 5.1.
Note: Cut-off criteria indicative of good fit are RMSEA b .06, and CFI > .95 (Hu & Bentler, 1999). More liberal criteria indicative of moderate levels of model fit are RMSEA b .08 and
CFI > .90 (Marsh, Hau, & Wen, 2004).
⁎ p b .05.
88 P. Qualter et al. / Learning and Individual Differences 22 (2012) 83–91

Fig. 3. Interactive effects of cognitive ability and ability EI on GCSE Performance for
girls.

interpretation, but are included in Table 3 under the measurement


model information.
The models in Figs. 1 and 2 show that for both males and females,
ability EI moderates the relationship between cognitive ability and
academic success. To facilitate the interpretation of these findings, in-
teraction plots were generated using the method recommended by
Aiken and West (1991). The resulting slopes are depicted in Figs. 3
and 4. For girls, the relation between ability EI and GCSE performance
was strongest when cognitive ability was high. For boys, the effects of
ability EI were different, such that relations between higher ability EI
and GCSE performance were strong for those low and high on cogni-
tive ability. Thus, girls and boys high on both cognitive ability and
ability EI in Year 7 scored higher than others on GCSE performance
in Year 11. Further, we find a positive effect of having high ability EI
Fig. 1. Final Model for EI predicting Academic Success for Boys.†Notes: † path coeffi-
for boys with low cognitive ability for GCSE performance. We do not
cients are standardised; the factor loadings of manifest variables for the latent variables find this same effect for girls: for girls, ability EI seems to be an advan-
of GCSE, ability EI, and cognitive ability can be found in Table 3. We used Little et al.'s tage only for those high on cognitive ability.
(2006) approach to create the interaction term detailed above.
4. Discussion

This prospective study examined the impact of both ability and


trait EI on future academic performance when cognitive ability and
personality are controlled. Results showed cognitive ability was by
far the biggest predictor of academic performance, which is in line
with previous studies (Deary et al., 2007; Furnham et al., 2009). In ad-
dition, we also find evidence that EI predicts academic performance,
which supports previous empirical work that measured EI concur-
rently or in one-year longitudinal studies (Austin et al., 2005;
Downey et al., 2008; Gil-Olarte Marquez et al., 2006; Lyons & Schnei-
der, 2005; Mestre et al., 2006; Parker, Creque, et al., 2004; Parker,
Summerfeldt, Hogan, & Majeski, 2004; Petrides et al., 2004; Vidal
Rodeiro et al., 2009). This study extends previous work in the follow-
ing ways: (1) it assesses these relationships over a five year period,
(2) it assesses both ability EI and trait EI and their moderating effects

Fig. 2. Final Model for EI predicting Academic Success for Girls.†Notes: † path coeffi-
cients are standardised; the factor loadings of manifest variables for the latent variables
of GCSE, ability EI, and cognitive ability can be found in Table 3. We used Little et al.'s Fig. 4. Interactive effects of cognitive ability and ability EI on GCSE Performance for
(2006) approach to create the interaction term detailed above. boys.
P. Qualter et al. / Learning and Individual Differences 22 (2012) 83–91 89

on cognitive ability within one study, (3) it uses latent variables of for girls. This level of association is in line with previous research with
these indicators in Structural Equation Modelling to increase power, adolescents (Zeidner, Shani-Zinovich, Matthews, & Roberts, 2004).
and (4) examines these effects separately for males and females. Also, ability- and trait EI differentially predict later academic success,
Our findings show associations between ability- and trait EI measured suggesting that they have distinct patterns of associations with later
at 11 years of age and academic performance five years later and il- performance, and should be treated as different constructs.
lustrate the importance of assessing these associations separately The results also confirm findings in the adult literature that trait EI is
for boys and girls. related to personality, but this is the first study that includes an exami-
As well as a direct effect of ability EI, our analyses show that ability nation of the link between personality dimensions and EI in an early ad-
EI moderates the effect of cognitive ability on GCSE performance; it olescent sample. In their recent meta-analysis with data collected from
does this differently for boys and girls. We find an advantage of hav- adult samples, Joseph and Newman (2010) reported the following rela-
ing high ability EI for boys high and low on cognitive ability as they tionships between trait EI and personality dimensions: .31 with Agree-
outperformed boys who were of similar cognitive ability, but had ableness, .38 with Conscientiousness, .40 with Emotional Stability, .32
low ability EI. We find this advantage for girls high on both cognitive with Extraversion and .29 with Openness. In the current study with
ability and EI as they outperformed their cognitively able, but lower early adolescents, we found evidence that certain aspects of trait EI
ability EI female peers; girls low on cognitive ability, but high on EI measured by the EQ-i:Yv (interpersonal, stress management, and
did not outperform their low cognitive ability, low ability EI peers, adaptability) related to neuroticism and extraversion, but only for
unlike for boys. It seems that having higher ability EI provides an ad- girls. Future work will want to examine these relationships further by
vantage for both boys and girls who are cognitively able when taking using different personality measures appropriate for use with this age
GCSE exams, but it helps only boys, and not girls, who are low on cog- group that cover different aspects of personality, such as conscientious-
nitive ability. ness (Temperament scale of Junior Temperament and Character Inven-
The mechanism by which ability EI provides an advantage for tory: Luby, Svrakic, McCallum, Przybeck, & Cloninger, 1999; The Big Five
some cognitively able adolescents will need to be explored in future Inventory: Soto & John, 2009a, 2009b). Such examinations will also
research. We propose that being able to identify emotional stressors want to explore these relationships across gender.
and manage these during the period of revision and examination pe- The use of different personality measures will also be important in
riod will be important in enabling cognitively able adolescents to further testing our model of academic success, where emotional func-
achieve their very best. We hypothesise that cognitively able adoles- tioning interacts with cognitive ability. For the current sample, per-
cents who are low on ability EI use more maladaptive coping when sonality was not associated with academic performance and does
dealing with emotional stressors surrounding revision, which then not appear in the final models. The absence of an effect could be
impacts academic performance. Thus, low ability EI might explain ad- due to the personality measure we used and we advise that future
justment problems experienced by some students high on cognitive work uses different personality measures that cover the full spectrum
ability (see Plucker & Levy, 2001 for review). of individual personality differences.
As well as providing an advantage for cognitively able boys, abil- The current study is not without its limitations. In particular, we
ity EI also provides this advantage for boys low on cognitive ability, have not determined the mechanisms by which EI impacts on aca-
such that they outperform boys low on both cognitive ability and demic achievement. We have proposed possible pathways, but future
ability EI. Although we have not measured the processes through research will want to investigate the specific mechanisms at work.
which ability EI influences the academic performance of boys with Recent work by MacCann, Fogarty, Zeidner, and Roberts (2011)
low IQ, we hypothesise that boys low on IQ, but high on ability EI shows problem-focused coping with stress and negative emotions is
use adaptive coping and are less tempted to avoid difficulties in the critical in understanding why emotional intelligence is associated
academic sphere by disengaging from academic activities. High abil- with enhanced achievement. Future research should extend this
ity EI enables these boys to manage emotions, which helps them work, but it might (1) utilise qualitative methodologies in prospective
maintain a positive mood and keeps them focused on the academic studies and (2) include work with specific groups of children, such as
task in hand. It also means they are less likely to disengage from students high on cognitive ability who demonstrate adjustment prob-
learning, and so less likely to gravitate towards peers who favour de- lems compared to those that do not.
linquent pursuits (Dishion, 1990; Hinshaw, 1992; Patterson, Capaldi, We showed that ability and trait EI are predictive of later academic
Bank, Pepler, & Rubin, 1991), and more likely to stay on a positive ac- performance, suggesting that the development of EI may improve ac-
ademic trajectories (Bandura, Barbaranelli, Caprara, & Pastorelli, ademic success. Support for the notion that EI can be developed
2001). So, having higher EI for a low cognitively able boy may help comes from studies where both types of EI have been improved and
him stay focused on learning as he handles his academic stressors have had positive effects on educational progression (Dacre-Pool &
appropriately. Qualter, in press; Nelis, Quoidbach, Mikolajczak, & Hansenne, 2009;
Trait EI was also found to predict academic performance, but this Qualter et al., 2007). We have shown here that ability EI in particular
was found only for boys. Gender differences in the role of trait EI in is important for academic achievement; from these findings, we pro-
predicting academic success support previous empirical study that pose that the teaching of emotional skills is likely to have the effect of
shows how gender differences in emotional self-efficacy are accom- increasing academic performance. We conclude that initiatives that
panied by differential patterns of adaptation, including academic per- can develop ability- and trait EI may offer educators significant op-
formance (Bandura, Caprara, Barbaranelli, Gerbino, & Pastorelli, portunities to improve educational achievement. Given our findings,
2003). In the current study, girls scored higher than boys on impor- we suggest that systematic evaluations of such interventions are
tant subscales of Trait EI in Year 7 and there was a differential pattern also important, and we recommend the use of both trait- and ability
of adaptation (academic performance) measured at the end of high EI measures and separate analyses for boys and girls.
school. This gender difference in the role of trait EI in predicting aca-
demic performance may be an outcome of the tendency of boys to be
more “self-congratulatory” in their self-efficacy responses, whereas Acknowledgements
girls tend to be more modest (Wigfield & Eccles, 1992). So, boys are
more likely to express confidence in skills they may not possess and We are grateful to the Head teachers, staff, and pupils of the par-
to express overconfidence in skills they do possess (Pajares, 2002). ticipating schools for their support throughout the study. Thanks
Our findings support the distinction between trait and ability EI as also to MHS for the use of the MSCEIT-Yv and the research assistants
the latent variables of these constructs correlated .45 for boys and .39 who helped with data collection.
90 P. Qualter et al. / Learning and Individual Differences 22 (2012) 83–91

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Update
Learning and Individual Differences
Volume 58, Issue , August 2017, Page 97–99

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2017.06.005
Learning and Individual Differences 58 (2017) 97–99

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Learning and Individual Differences


journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/lindif

Corrigendum

Corrigendum to “Ability emotional intelligence, trait emotional intelligence, MARK


and academic success in British secondary schools: A 5 year longitudinal
study” [Learning and Individual Differences 22 (2012) 83–91]
Pamela Qualtera,⁎, Kathryn J. Gardnera, Debbie J. Popeb, Jane M. Hutchinsona,
Helen E. Whiteleyb
a
School of Psychology, University of Central Lancashire, Preston, Lancashire, UK
b
Department of Social and Psychological Science, Edge Hill University, Ormskirk, Lancashire, UK

In the article ‘Ability emotional intelligence, trait emotional in- Correct fit statistics for the final models are as follows: boys: χ2
telligence, and academic success in British secondary schools: A 5-year (df = 288) = 629.163, p < 0.001, CFI = 0.95, RMSEA = 0.08; girls:
longitudinal study’ by Qualter, P., Gardner, K.J., Pope, D.J., χ2 (df = 194) = 542.487 p = 0.001, CFI = 0.89, RMSEA = 0.09). A
Hutchinson, J.M., and Whiteley, H.E. (2012). Learning and Individual significant difference was found between the initial and final models for
Differences, 22, 83–91. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2011. boys (Δχ2 = 1074.687, Δdf = 347, p < 0.001), and girls
11.007, there were errors in the reporting of some statistical outcomes. (Δχ2 = 1436.968, Δdf = 441, p < 0.001), suggesting that the final
Those mistakes come from reporting numbers from SEM results related models fit the data better.
to a different aspect of the larger project of which the current study was The reading of numbers from the wrong SEM analyses also meant
one part rather than reporting numbers from SEM analyses that related that the final model specification in Fig. 2 was incorrectly noted; Fig. 3
to the current study. A further error occurred when typing the Chi- showing the interactive effects of cognitive ability and ability EI on
square statistics (from the wrong SEM analyses) into Table 3 of the GCSE Performance for girls included mistakes because it was based on
paper: these numbers were put into the wrong cells of that column. findings reported in Fig. 2. The correct figures are noted below.
These two mistakes mean that (1) the fit statistics and factor loadings The changes to the paper do not affect the overall conclusion pre-
for the measurement models used in the study were incorrectly sented in the paper, that emotional intelligence predicts academic
reported, and (2) the reported RMSEA and CFI results did not match performance. Four ways the results extend the literature are discussed
the chi-square statistics for the given degrees of freedom. A corrected in the first paragraph of the discussion — those still stand. But, it is the
version of Table 3 that includes numbers from the correct SEM analyses case that, rather than ability EI providing an advantage for girls high on
is given here. cognitive ability, it provided an advantage for girls low on cognitive
The reading of the wrong SEM results and the additional transposing ability. This means that comments in the 4th paragraph of the discus-
errors in relation to the chi-square statistics meant incorrect model fit sion that consider how ability emotional intelligence influences the
information for the initial and final models were also reported. Correct academic performance of boys with low IQ also apply to girls.
details for the initial full models are as follows: boys (χ2 (df = 635) The authors requested this corrigendum, wanting to correct the
= 1703.85, p < 0.001, CFI = 0.78, RMSEA = 0.09); girls (χ2 scientific record. They sincerely regret these mistakes.
(df = 635) = 1979.445, p < 0.001, CFI = 0.76, RMSEA = 0.10).

DOI of original article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2011.11.007



Corresponding author.
E-mail address: PQualter@uclan.ac.uk (P. Qualter).

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2017.06.005

1041-6080/
P. Qualter et al. Learning and Individual Differences 58 (2017) 97–99

Table 3
Table 3 Measurement models (factor loadings and fit indices) for each latent variable to be used in the full SEM model for boys and girls separately.

Boys (N = 199) Girls (N = 214)

Factor loadings χ 2
df RMSEA CFI Factor loadings χ2 df RMSEA CFI

Cognitive ability (CAT)a CATv = 0.79 CATv = 0.83


CATq = 0.80 CATq = 0.77
CATnv = 0.88 CATnv = 0.58
Ability EI (MSCEIT-Yv) Section A = 0.38 1.139 2 0.00 1.00 Section A = 0.47 0.996 2 0.00 1.00
Section B = 0.53 Section B = 0.61
Section C = 0.98 Section C = 0.75
Section D = 0.70 Section D = 0.62
Trait EI (EQi-YV) Intrapersonal = 0.65 4.458 2 0.08 0.96 Intrapersonal = 0.55 4.105 2 0.07 0.97
Interpersonal = 0.58 Interpersonal = 0.54
Stress Manage = 0.58 Stress Manage = 0.61
Adaptability = 0.75 Adaptability = 0.40
GSCE Performance Maths = 0.92 0.609 2 0.00 1.00 Maths = 0.82 3.589 2 0.06 1.00
English Language = 0.69 English Language = 0.67
English Lit. = 0.70 English Lit. = 0.75
Science = 0.83 Science = 0.87

Notes: standardized estimates are used; CFA for each latent variable conducted in MPlus 5.1, and confirmed in AMOS 22.
a
Saturated model so goodness of fit tests are not applicable — the noted factor loadings come from the final model. Cut-off criteria indicative of good fit are RMSEA < 0.06, and
CFI > 0.95 (Hu and Bentler, 1999). More liberal criteria indicative of moderate levels of model fit are RMSEA < 0.08 and CFI > 0.90 (Marsh, Hau, & Wen, 2004).

Fig. 2. Final model for EI predicting academic success for


girls.
Notes: *p < 0.05, ***p < 0.001, †p = 0.051. Path coeffi-
cients are standardized; the factor loadings of manifest vari-
ables for the latent variables of GCSE, ability EI, and cognitive
ability can be found in Table 3. We used Little, Bovaird, and
Widaman's (2006) approach to create the interaction term
detailed above.

98
P. Qualter et al. Learning and Individual Differences 58 (2017) 97–99

10
9
8

GCSE Performance
7
6
5 Low Ability
EI
4
3 High Ability
2 EI

1
0
Low Cognitive Ability High Cognitive Ability

Fig. 3. Interactive effects of cognitive ability and ability EI on GCSE Performance for girls.

99

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