EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE: EMPATHETIC DISCOURSE

Abstract

The article investigates the concepts of «empathy/empathetic» and «emotional intelligence» in the cycle of young people's development, particularly in higher education students. In the present circumstances of personal growth, the problem of developing emotional intelligence is considered a priority in learning as it contributes to social and intellectual maturity, as well as moral awareness. Today's society demands an adequate response to crisis/stress situations, which are currently provoked by the war situation in Ukraine, leading to aggression, fear, panic, apathy, depression, and more. This requires not only understanding these situational reactions but also responding and interacting correctly in ways that do not harm but instead support and help. It is assumed that the level of intellectual development as cognitive activity enables individuals to acquire new knowledge not only about the world but also about various aspects of life, particularly in the context of emotional and moral aspects of personal interaction with society. The author analyzes historical and contemporary studies on the formation and development of the emotional sphere of personality and the specifics of emotional intelligence development. A person will be considered as a personality if they choose the path of self-education, self-improvement, and self-development, including their vital energy, as one of the priority areas of their development. This choice enables them to understand and adequately assess their own and others' state and emotional experiences while refraining from imposing their own beliefs and instead creating conditions for personal choice and decisionmaking. Based on the results of empirical research, we conclude that the level of personal emotional intelligence in young people contributes to reducing the frequency of negative emotional experiences.