The Relationship Between Sleep Quality And Emotional Intelligence Amongst Students In Usiu-A, Kenya

This study aimed to assess the sleep quality, levels of emotional intelligence, and identify the relationship between sleep quality and emotional intelligence amongst students in USIU-Africa, Kenya. The study was carried out in United States International University Africa (USIU-A) in Nairobi, Kenya on 399 students. The tools used for measuring sleep quality and emotional intelligence were Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and the Schutte Self Report Emotional Intelligence Test (SSEIT) respectively. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 27 was used for analyzing the data collected. The average USIU-A student was found to have poor sleep quality (M= 7.12, SD= 3.327), and normal emotional intelligence level (M=119.6, SD=19.6). A significant negative correlation r(397)= -0.196, p < 0.001 was found between sleep quality and emotional intelligence. More research is required on the topic locally as well as globally to draw definite conclusions. Recommendations include focusing on interventions to improve sleep quality amongst university students, as well as looking into other factors that contribute towards emotional intelligence. Future research should target the healthcare sector, as well as careers where poor sleep quality is prevalent and emotional intelligence is required.