Emotional Intelligence and Academic Performance among Male and Female Medical Undergraduates in rural Sindh province, Pakistan.

Background & Objectives: Medical undergraduates face demanding requirements that heighten risk of stress, burnout, and poor performance. Emotional intelligence (EI), the ability to perceive, understand, and manage emotions supports resilience, well-being, and learning. However, evidence from Pakistan is inconsistent, with existing studies generally reporting moderate EI levels and context-dependent associations with academic outcomes. Our objective was to assess the emotional intelligence levels of medical undergraduates, compare EI between male and female students, and examine the association of EI with academic performance. Methodology: A cross-sectional study was conducted from 1 Results: Students demonstrated moderate EI (global EI mean = 4.53, SD = 0.77). Well-being was the strongest factor (mean = 5.16, SD = 0.94), and self-control the weakest (mean = 4.03, SD = 1.04). No significant differences among male and female students were found across global EI or its factors (p > 0.05). Reliability analysis showed good internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.88 for global EI; subscales ranged from 0.76 to 0.84). EI factors showed no significant link with academic performance, except for a weak positive correlation between sociability and CGPA (r = 0.153, p = 0.046), reflecting only a weak effect size. Conclusion: Medical students showed moderate levels of emotional intelligence, with no significant differences between male and female groups. Emotional intelligence was generally unrelated to academic performance, except for a weak positive association between sociability and CGPA.