Relationship between differentiation of self, emotional intelligence and self-esteem in a Spanish sample

This study analyzes the relationship between differentiation of self, emotional intelligence and self-esteem in a sample of 285 Spanish subjects, 191 women and 94 men, aged between 18 and 85 years. Participants answered a sociodemographic questionnaire, the Differentiation of Self Scale (DSS), the Trait Meta-Mood Scale-24 (TMMS-24) and the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES). Results showed that differentiation of self and its dimensions, emotional intelligence dimensions and self-esteem were interrelated. Furthermore, emotional attention, emotional repair, and self-esteem were related to age. It was also found that men had greater emotional cutoff, while women showed more emotional reactivity and higher emotional attention and clarity. Finally, differentiation of self predicted both emotional intelligence and self-esteem, and the relationship between differentiation of self and self-esteem was mediated by clarity and emotional repair. The results, which have important implications for clinical and research fields, are discussed and new lines of research are proposed.