Emotional intelligence and its association with experiences of childhood corporal punishment and adult sexual experiences of college students in The Bahamas
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15362/ijbs.v32i1.651Keywords:
Corporal Punishment, Emotional Intelligence, Adult sexual experiences, Child sexual abuse, Parenting practices, Emotional regulation, Child rearingAbstract
This study presents the results of a survey which examined the links between childhood corporal punishment (CP), emotional intelligence (EI) and adult sexual experiences as reported by 631 postsecondary students in The Bahamas. Respondents reported that experiences of CP diminished after age 13; however, over half of the participants suffered CP when aged 13-17 years. Mothers were the most likely person to inflict CP and their typical state was one of anger. Male participants were less invested in their sexual relationships than females. No significant difference was found in the EI scores of males and females. Only in the dimension of Emotional Regulation of Others and Emotional Regulation of Self were differences found between males and females. Respondents engaged in more stable relationships had high EI scores than those who were not. Respondents who were either victims or victimisers of sexual abuse, tended to have lower EI scores than other respondents. Experiencing CP when aged 5-12 was linked with a higher risk of being sexually abused. The study indicates the association between EI, child rearing practices and adult sexual experiences in college-aged participants. Diminished EI was associated with various adult sexual experiences of concern. As such, it indicates the need for parents to revisit their parenting practices and to utilise positive means of rearing children and so ensure that their upbringing does not diminish EI. The results indicate that a larger sample size and the inclusion of a wider range of participants would be useful in verifying these results.
References
Alampay, L. P., Godwin, J., Lamsford, J. E., Bombi, A. S., Bornstein, M.H., Chang, L., Deater-Deckard, K., Di Giunta, L., Dodge K. A., Malone, P. S., Oburu, P., Pastorelli, C., Skinner, A. T., Sorbring, E., Tapanya, S., Uribe Tirado, L. M., Xelli, A., Al-Hassan, S. M., & Bacchini, D. (2017). Severity and justness do not moderate the relation between corporal punishment and negative child outcomes: A multicultural and longitudinal study. International Journal of Behavioural Development, 41(4), 491–502. https://doi.org/10.1177/0165025417697852
Austin, E. J., Saklofske, D. H., Huang, S. H. S., & McKenney, D. (2004). Measurement of trait emotional intelligence: Testing and cross-validating a modified version of Schutte et al.'s (1998) measure. Personality and Individual Differences, 36(3), 555–562. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0191-8869(03)00114-4
Bahamas Department of Statistics. (2016). Bahamas household expenditure survey 2013. Bahamas Department of Statistics. https://stats.gov.bs/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Bahamas-Household-Expenditure-Survey-2013-Report_v2.pdf
Bahamas National Task Force for Gender-Based Violence. (2015). Strategic plan to address gender -based violence. Ministry of Social Services and Community Development. https://www.svri.org/sites/default/files/attachments/2016-07-21/Bahamas.pdf
Bahamas National Statistical Institute. (2025). 2022 census of population and housing. Second report. Bahamas National Statistical Institute. https://bnsistats.gov.bs/assets/publications/2022-census-2nd-releasehousehold-and-dwelling-characteristics-20251020132803-(1).pdf
Bahamas National Statistical Institute. (2026). Distribution of households by sex of head May 2019. https://stats.gov.bs/data/household-income-and-expenditure/distribution-of-households-by-sex-of-head-may-2019/
Barnow, S., Lucht, M., & Freyberger, H. J. (2001). Influence of punishment, emotional rejection, child abuse, and broken home on aggression in adolescence: An examination of aggressive adolescents in Germany. Psychopathology, 34(4), 167–173. https://doi.org/10.1159/000049302
Bethel, N., & Fielding, W. J. (2020). Attitudes and knowledge of Bahamian college students regarding sexual consent. International Journal of Bahamian Studies, 26, 73–100. https://doi.org/10.15362/ijbs.v26i0.371
Brennen, S., Fielding, W. J., Carroll, M. C., McCants Miller, J. C., Adderley, L., & Thompson, M. A. (2010). A preliminary investigation of the prevalence of corporal punishment of children and selected co-occurring behaviours in households on New Providence, The Bahamas. International Journal of Bahamian Studies, 16, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.15362/ijbs.v16i0.121
Cao, X., & Chen, J. (2025). The association between emotional intelligence and prosocial behaviors in children and adolescents: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 54(3), 607–624. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-024-02062-y
Carroll, M. A., Fielding, W. J., Brennen, S., & Hutcheson, S. P. (2016). Rearing violence: Violence toward children at home. In Fielding, W. J., Ballance, V. & Strachan, I. (Eds.). (2016). Violence in The Bahamas. University of The Bahamas. https://dloc.com/AA00078778/00005/pdf
Chaplin, T. M., Cole, P. M., & Zahn-Waxler, C. (2005). Parental socialization of emotion expression: Gender differences and relations to child adjustment. Emotion, 5(1), 80–88. https://doi.org/10.1037/1528-3542.5.1.80
Darvishi, N., Farhadi, M., & Poorolajal, J. (2025). The role of emotional intelligence in preventing suicidal behaviors: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Research in Health Sciences, 25(2), e00643. https://doi.org/10.1037/1528-3542.5.1.80
Durand, G. (2022). The relationship between emotional intelligence, well-being, and education level. Preprints.org. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202212.0394.v1
Dvir, Y., Ford, J. D., Hill, M., & Frazier, J. A. (2014). Childhood maltreatment, motional dysregulation, and psychiatric comorbidities. Harvard Review of Psychiatry 22(3), 149–161. https://doi.org/10.1097/HRP.0000000000000014
Fielding, W. J., Ballance, V., & Strachan, I. (Eds.). (2016). Violence in The Bahamas. University of The Bahamas. https://ufdc.ufl.edu/aa00078778/00001
Fielding, W. J., & Ballance, V. (2021). Knowledge, attitudes and practices of corporal punishment in Bahamian homes. International Journal of Bahamian Studies, 27, 47–62. https://ijbs.ub.edu.bs/index.php/files/article/view/121
Fielding, W. J., & Ballance, V. C. (2022a). The Bahamian justification for using corporal punishment within the home: A Christian habit? International Journal of Bahamian Studies, 28, 17-32. https://doi.org/10.15362/ijbs.v28i0.449
Fielding, W. J., & Ballance, V. C. (Eds.). (2022b). Sexual violence in The Bahamas: An introduction. University of The Bahamas Press. https://ufdcimages.uflib.ufl.edu/AA/00/09/13/34/00001/
Fielding, W. J., Abecassis, M., Isquith, P. K., & Roth, R. M. (2025). Childhood corporal punishment in Bahamian college students: Association with executive functions, mood, sensitivity to reward and punishment, openness to experience, and creativity. International Journal of Bahamian Studies, 31(1), 41–64. https://doi.org/10.15362/ijbs.v31i1.587
Fielding, W. J., Rolle-Sands, S. Y., & Campbell, T. (2026). A description of sweethearting in The Bahamas. International Journal of Bahamian Studies, 31(2), 1–20. https://doi.org/10.15362/ijbs.v31i2.641
Gershoff, E. T., Goodman, G. S., Miller-Perrin, C. L., Holden, G. W., Jackson, Y., & Kazdin, A. E. (2018). The strength of the causal evidence against physical punishment of children and its implications for parents, psychologists, and policymakers. American Psychologist, 73(5), 626–638. https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0000327
Gignac, G. E., Palmer, B. R., Manocha, R., & Stough, C. (2005). An examination of the factor structure of the Schutte Self-Report Emotional Intelligence (SSEIT) scale using confirmatory factor analysis. Personality and Individual Differences, 39(6), 1029–1042. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2005.03.014
Graziano, A. M., Lindquist, C. M., Kunce, L. J., & Munjal, K. (1992). Physical punishment in childhood and current attitudes: An exploratory comparison of college students in the United States and India. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 7(2), 147–155. https://doi.org/10.1177/088626092007002001
Hartnell, N. (2017, January 5). IDB: Bahamas skills gaps are ‘worrisome’. The Tribune. https://www.tribune242.com/news/2017/jan/05/idb-bahamas-skills-gaps-are-worrisome/?news
Jardine, B. B., Vannier, S., & Voyer, D. (2022). Emotional intelligence and romantic relationship satisfaction: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Personality and Individual Differences, 196, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2022.111713
Krishnakumar, A., Narine, L., Logie, C., Addo, O. O., & Ong’ayi, D. M. M. (2023). Maternal parenting profiles, correlates, and children’s mental health outcomes in Trinidad and Tobago. Caribbean Journal of Psychology, 15(2), 1–32. https://doi-org.cob.idm.oclc.org/10.37234/CJP.2023.1502.A001
Liverpool, S., Pereira, B., Pollard, M., Prescod, J., & Trotman, C. (2021). Children and young people's mental health in the English-speaking Caribbean: A scoping review and evidence map. Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health, 15(1), 82. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13034-021-00435-w
Mambra, A. J. K., & Kotian, S. (2022). A systematic review on adolescents’ emotional intelligence and aggressive behaviour. International Journal of Management, Technology, and Social Sciences (IJMTS), 7(1), 484–503. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6775490
Mayer, J. D., & Salovey, P. (1993). The intelligence of emotional intelligence. Intelligence, 17(4), 433–442. https://doi.org/10.1016/0160-2896(93)90010-3
Moxey-Adderley, T. E., & Fielding, W. J (2024). Aggression and its correlates in the Bahamian community with a focus on corporal punishment. International Journal of Bahamian Studies 30, 15–32. https://doi.org/10.15362/ijbs.v30i1.557
Perez-Vincent, S. M., Puebla, D., & Alvarado, N. (2024) The costs of crime and violence: Expansion and update of estimates for Latin America and the Caribbean. Inter-American Development Bank. https://publications.iadb.org/en/costs-crime-and-and-violence-expansion-and-update-estimates-latin-america-and-caribbean
Petrova, K., & Gross, J. J. (2023). Emotion regulation in self and others. In I. Roskam, J. J. Gross, & M. Mikolajczak (Eds.), Emotion regulation and parenting (pp. 35–54). Cambridge University Press.
Salguero-Alcañiz, M. P., Merchán-Clavellino, A., & Alameda-Bailén, J. R. (2023). Youth dating violence, behavioural sensitivity, and emotional intelligence: A mediation analysis. Healthcare (11)17, 2445. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare11172445
Schutte, N. S., Malouff, J. M., Hall, L. E., Haggerty, D. J., Cooper, J. T., Golden, C. J., & Dornheim, L. (1998). Development and validation of a measure of emotional intelligence. Personality and Individual Differences, 25, 167–177. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0191-8869(98)00001-4
Sherin, K. M., Sinacore, J. M., Li, X. Q., Zitter, R. E., & Shakil, A. (1998). HITS: A short domestic violence screening tool for use in a family practice setting. Family Medicine, 30(7), 508–512. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9669164/
Styles, J., Knowles, L., & Ebron, K. (2024). Cultivating leadership: Female leaders in the Royal Bahamas Defense Force. Journal of Values-Based Leadership: 17(2), article 19. https://doi.org/10.22543/1948-0733.1519
The Knowledge Academy. (2026). Emotional intelligence training Bahamas. https://www.theknowledgeacademy.com/bs/courses/personal-development-training/emotional-intelligence/
Tong, L., Shinohara, R., Sugisawa, Y., Tanaka, E., Watanabe, T., Koeda, T., & Anme, T. (2015). Buffering effect of parental engagement on the relationship between corporal punishment and children's emotional/behavioral problems. Pediatrics International: Official Journal of the Japan Pediatric Society, 57(3), 385–392. https://doi.org/10.1111/ped.12604
University of The Bahamas (2023, November 26). Emerging leaders distinguished lecture series fosters emotional intelligence in university students [Press release]. https://www.ub.edu.bs/emerging-leaders-distinguished-lecture-series-fosters-emotional-intelligence-university-students/
Vega, A., Cabello, R., Megías-Robles, A., Gómez-Leal, R., & Fernández-Berrocal, P. (2022). Emotional intelligence and aggressive behaviors in adolescents: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Trauma, Violence & Abuse, 23(4), 1173–1183. https://doi.org/10.1177/1524838021991296
Wallace, A. (2017. September 29). Culture clash: The intelligence needed to care [Weblog post]. https://aliciaawallace.com/bahamas/culture-clash-the-intelligence-needed-to-care/
Ward, T., Hudson, S. M., & Keenan, T. (1998). A self-regulation model of the sexual offense process. Sex Abuse, 10, 141–157. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022071516644
World Health Organization. (2024). Bahamas: Health data overview for the Commonwealth of The Bahamas. https://data.who.int/countries/044
Zahid, M. H., Zahid, M. S., Ali, R., & Siddique, A. (2025). Students’ emotional intelligence and its effect on academic achievement at university level. Journal of Asian Development Studies 14(1). https://doi.org/10.62345/jads.2025.14.1.47
