Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Dental education is a vigorous and stressful process characterized by academic, clinical, and patient care demands. Research suggests better stress management is associated with emotional intelligence (EI), the capacity to appreciate and control emotions. The aim of this study is to evaluate EI and perceived stress levels among dental postgraduate students in the Kurdistan region and examine their correlation as well as identify key influencing factors. METHODS: A cross-sectional study that included 190 postgraduate dental students from Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, and Duhok was conducted between March and July of 2024. The perceived stress scale (PSS) evaluated stress levels, and the Schutte Self-Report Emotional Intelligence Test (SSEIT) evaluated EI through emotion appraisal, regulation, and utilization. RESULTS: 38.6% of the respondents reported high levels of stress. There was a statistically significant difference between the EI scores of females and males (p = 0.045), with female students having higher EI scores than males. Lower stress and higher EI scores were observed in first-year students as compared to third-year students. While higher EI was associated with less stress (weak negative correlation, r = -0.237, p > 0.05), this association was not statistically significant in this study population, suggesting that while high EI may assist in regulating stress, the observed effect shown was non-significant. CONCLUSION: The current study confirmed the high level of stress among dental students in the Kurdistan region and the effectiveness of EI in improving it. The results of our study suggest that the incorporation of EI training in dental curricula, especially for students close to graduation, would help to improve resilience and mental health. Structured EI workshops and stress management interventions tailored to the specific needs of students may enable students to effectively manage academic and clinical stressors.