ROLES OF EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE, PERSONALITY TRAITS, AGE AND JAIL LENGTH ON PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS AMONG INMATES AT CORRECTIONAL SERVICE CENTRE IN OWERRI

Abstract

The study examined the roles of emotional intelligence, personality traits, age and jail length on psychological distress among inmates in Owerri. One hundred and thirty inmates (150), comprising seventy (70) males and sixty (60) females, were selected purposively/conveniently from the Owerri Correctional Service Centre. Their ages ranged from 18 to 54 years, with a mean of 32 and a standard deviation of 9.21. Three instruments were employed: the Psychophysiological Symptom Checklist, the Emotional Intelligence scale, and the Big Five Inventory (BFI). Five hypotheses were postulated and tested. A cross-sectional survey design was adopted, and Multiple regression statistics were used for data analysis. The results revealed that emotional intelligence, neuroticism and age are significant predictors of psychological distress, while jail length and agreeableness did not predict psychological distress among inmates. It was recommended, among others, that the correctional system should move beyond punitive models toward psychologically informed rehabilitation strategies.