EXPLORING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE AND RELIGION IN ALBANIA

Abstract

This article focused on emotional skills and efficiency, i.e. on emotional intelligence and the relationship it has with religious belief as a whole, within the Albanian case. It should be noted that so far, there has been little attempt to link emotional intelligence (EI) to religion, and especially in the case of Albania where such studies are lacking. Therefore, the purpose of the current study is to examine and investigate whether there is a relationship between emotional intelligence and having religious beliefs in this setting. To research further on this topic, the study used a quantitative study design. Primary data were collected through an online survey distributed in Google Forms, and analyzed in descriptive form through the article. A total of 291 participants participated in the study, of which most of them were female (88.3%). Also, most of the respondents were young age group, and we belonged to the age of 20-30 years (43.3%), as well as the age of 31-40 years (36.4%). Almost of the sample had at least at list one higher degree diploma. Whereas regarding the religion, half of the sample were self-reported as Muslim, whereas the other half were mixed. This study concluded that there is no relationship between emotional intelligence and religious beliefs in the study group in the case of Albania. It was concluded that the case of Albania was in fact a special case that it belongs to religious faiths entirely because of their own history, and that the foundations of religious tolerance in Albania are deeply rooted in traditions and social culture and do not come from consciousness, knowledge or practice of religious rites.