الفهرس 
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Abstract
Working in a group involves displaying a caring orientation, appreciation and respect through display of emotions, such as support, validation and compassion. When these emotions are managed properly, the quality of social interactions tends to improve. Thereby, GEI plays important role in group environments because it has the potential to enable group members to notice and understand one another’s emotions, manage destructive emotions, recognize emotions, and use emotional information leading to improved group work, group performance and better effectiveness. It predicts nurses’ job satisfaction and success in the clinical setting and everyday life.
Job satisfaction is an important component of nurses’ lives that can impact patient safety, productivity, performance, quality of care, retention, turnover, commitment to the organization and the profession. It refers attitude toward the job itself and the work environment and is the extent of pleasurable emotional feelings individuals have about their jobs overall.
Aim of the study
The present study aimed to assess the relationship between group emotional intelligence (GEI) among nurses and their job satisfaction.
Setting of the study:
The study was conducted at the Intensive Care Units (ICUs) at the following hospitals that are affiliated to the Ministry of Health and Population at Al Behara Governorate namely; Damanhour Chest Hospital (17 beds), Damanhour Fever Hospital (5 beds), Abou Hommos General Hospital (6 beds), General Public Itay El Baroud Hospital (11 beds), and Kafr El Dawwar General Hospital (17beds).
Subjects of the study:
The study subjects included all the nurses who are working in ICUs in the previously mentioned hospitals with different educational qualifications (n=141); Damanhour Chest Hospital (30 nurses), Damanhour Fever Hospital (20 nurses), Abou Hommos General Hospital (17 nurses), Kafr El Dawwar General Hospital (29 nurses) and General Public Itay El Baroud Hospital (45 nurses) with at least one year experience in their current ICU.
Tools of the study:
Two tools were used for data collection.
Tool I: group Emotional Intelligence Assessment Questionnaire (GEIAQ): (Appendix II)
It was developed by Hamme (2003) (11), to assess the group emotional intelligence (GEI). It is composed of 78 items classified into three levels namely; individual, group and cross boundary. Responses were adapted from seven to three point likert scale for more simplification ranging from (3) agree to (1) disagree. The total scores range from 78-234.
Tool II: Index of Work Satisfaction: (Appendix II)
It was developed by Taunton et al. (2003) (29), it was used to examine nurses’ level of job satisfaction. It consisted of seven dimensions namely: task, nurse-nurse interaction and nurse-physician interaction, decision- making, autonomy, professional status and pay. The responses were adapted from 6-point to 3-point likert scale ranging from (3) agree to (1) disagree. The total scores range from 44-132.
In addition, socio-demographic data sheet was developed by the researcher. It included questions related to unit, age, education, years of experience in the unit and hospital, and marital status of the study subjects.
Method:
Data was collected from the identified subjects after meeting with each nurse in his/ her work setting for about five minutes to explain the aim of the study and needed instructions were given before distribution of the previously mentioned questionnaires. Each nurse took about 15 minutes to fill the questionnaires. Data collection took a period of two months started from 1/11/2017 till 30/12/2017
The main findings of the present study are:
• The majority of nurses perceived high mean percent score of GEI (74.05 ± 18.66) and job satisfaction (73.53 ± 9.94).
• There was no statistical significant difference between nurses’ socio–demographic characteristics and their overall GEI.
• There were statistical significant differences between nurses’ socio–demographic characteristics and their job satisfaction in terms of age and years of nursing experience.
• A very highly significant positive relationship was found between the nurses’ perception of their job satisfaction and the total group emotional intelligence, where P= 0.000.
Recommendations were given, based on the findings of the present study
1. The hospital administrators have to:
• Revise the hospital policies to promote flexibility, open communication and participation in decision making, for increasing the autonomy of nurses.
• Provide adequate financial resources for the provision of the needed training programs for nurses.
• Equip the nursing departments with psychological mentor for nurses to help them face their daily emotional demands and help newly employed nurses to build their GEI.
• Evaluate hospital units annually and providing incentives for highest cooperative and emotionally intelligent groups in order to motivate nurses to maintain high levels of GEI.
2. The nursing directors have to:
• Conduct meetings periodically with nurses from different hospital units to discuss issues related to their work and solve their problems to make their voice heard.
• Continuous monitoring of nurses’ GEI and job satisfaction with all aspects of that work would provide valuable insight into the practices of the work groups and further implications for effective workgroups and improvement of the quality of care.
• Develop ongoing training programs for nurses to reinforce their autonomy through setting a specific schedule and choose nurses and doctors alternately to attend training programs for effective communication, creating a positive work environment, decision making, and group work through staff development department.
3. The first line nurse managers have to:
• Provide staff nurses with continuous feedback about their group performance and GEI.
• Provide staff nurses with a well understood written rules concerning group members’ conduct and accepted behavior within the group.
• Build autonomy of nurses by providing them with more authorities and responsibilities, encourage information sharing and becoming role model for them.