Angry rumination as a mediator of the relationship between ability emotional intelligence and various types of aggression

Abstract

Ability Emotional Intelligence (AEI) has been negatively associated with aggressive behavior. There is, however, no evidence about the associations between AEI and indirect aggression or angry rumination, although several studies have reported that people with low AEI tend to use depressive rumination as an emotional regulation strategy. The purposes of this study were to provide preliminary evidence on the relationships between AEI and angry rumination and between AEI and indirect aggression, and to examine the role of angry rumination as a mediator of the relationship between AEI and different types of aggression (physical, verbal and indirect aggression). We used a cross-sectional design; 243 undergraduate students completed questionnaires assessing the variables of interest. The results provided evidence for negative associations between AEI and both angry rumination and indirect aggression. Analysis also indicated that angry rumination was a significant mediator of the relationship between AEI and all three types of aggression. These findings are discussed in the light of aggression models and their practical implications for work on prevention or treatment of aggressive behavior are considered.