Influence Of Emotional Intelligence On Economics Teachers’ Self-Efficacy: The Moderating Role Of Background Characteristics

Abstract

While emotional intelligence and self-efficacy are essential for teachers, there is a dearth of studies regarding Economic teachers at senior high schools in Ghana. The study examined the influence of Emotional intelligence and Self-Efficacy on Economic teachers in Senior High Schools. A quantitative research approach embedded with a descriptive survey design was employed. A multi-state sampling and census method was used to select 138 Economic teachers from the sixteen regions from Northern, Southern and Middle zones. The Smart PLS software was used to estimate models with data obtained using basic PLS-SEM, weighted PLS-SEM (WLPS), consistent PLS-SEM (PLSc-SEM), and total scores regression methods for the research. The study’s findings revealed that background characteristics, such as marital status, gender, and length of service or experience, were predictive of the emotional intelligence of the teachers in the schools in Ghana. The study established that the demographic variables, i.e., marital status, gender and length of service or experience, significantly positively impacted the teachers’ self-efficacy in the schools sampled. In addition, the results revealed that emotional intelligence significantly predicted teachers’ self-efficacy in Ghana’s senior high schools. The findings declined the postulation by showing that the background features of the teachers did not moderate the impact of Emotional Intelligence on Self-Efficacy. The study recommends that the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Education Service should put up measures to develop the emotional intelligence of the teachers in senior high schools in Ghana.