International Comparative Analysis of the Schutte Self-Report Emotional Intelligence Scale

Measurement of emotional intelligence has proved to be problematic in terms of sample, measurement, and conceptual issues. The current study refines the sample to clearly identified countries of the United States, Brazil, and India. Country identification will facilitate an examination of cultural differences in the Schutte Self-Report Emotional Intelligence Scale (SSREI) factor structure. The SSREI became one of the few instruments measuring EI that were in the public domain (Tett et al., 2005). Further studies indicated structural problems with the SSREI (Austin et al., 2004; Gignac et al., 2005; Petrides & Furnham, 2000; and Saklofske et al., 2003). Researchers stressed the need to test the instrument on a wider range of populations. Data collected through a collaborative research project with Baldwin Wallace University, FAE Business School in Curitiba, Brazil and Christ University in Bangalore, India are used to compare the U.S., Brazil, and India responses to the Schutte Self-Report Emotional Intelligence Scale (SSREI). Data was collected from 646 MBA students across the three countries. Results show that dimensions of the SSREI do not translate well across cultures, but the unidimensional scale may be appropriate across cultures.