The Influence of Trait Emotional Intelligence and Gender Interaction on Draw-A-Person Emotional Indicators during Childhood

The Draw-a-Person (DAP) test is a projective tool particularly suitable for understanding intellectual development, emotional dimensions and personality traits in children. The present study seeks to examine the relationship between trait Emotional Intelligence (EI) and DAP emotional indicators accounting for gender interaction in a sample of Italian primary school-aged children (8-9 years of age). Participants were asked to complete the child version of the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire (TEIQue-CF) and the DAP test. Results showed that: a) both genders had the same score on trait EI but females had a significantly higher score on the levels of emotional indicators than males, and b) trait EI significantly moderated the effects of gender on the DAP scores. Specifically, females showed higher levels of emotional indicators than their male counterparts for DAP only at high trait EI levels. The implications of these results for clinical assessment and future directions for research are discussed.