Psychobiographies offer the illuminating experience of uncovering the story of an individual’s life through the lens of a psychological theory. Psychobiographies offer the chance to gain a deeper understanding of what makes that individual unique. This study aimed to explore and describe the emotional intelligence of Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu according to Goleman’s (1998) theory of Emotional Intelligence. Tutu was chosen as a subject for this study because of his extraordinary life and accomplishments, and because he is regarded as a prominent figure of moral leadership in South Africa. A qualitative psychobiographical research method was utilised. Data was collected from both primary and secondary sources to enhance internal validity, and was then analysed according to Miles and Huberman’s (1994) approach. The findings suggest that Tutu applied all of the twenty five emotional intelligence capacities during his life, and that at times, some were used more extensively than others. This study is groundbreaking in that it is the first psychobiography on Desmond Tutu, and it is the first psychobiography undertaken at the University of Fort Hare. Psychobiographies offer an opportunity to evaluate the psychological theory which is applied. It was found that Goleman’s (1998) theory of Emotional Intelligence is supported by this study.
Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:ufh/vital:11856 |
Date | January 2011 |
Creators | Eliastam, Liesl Marijke |
Publisher | University of Fort Hare, Faculty of Social Sciences & Humanities |
Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
Language | English |
Detected Language | English |
Type | Thesis, Masters, M Soc Sc (C Psy) |
Format | 95 leaves; 30 cm, pdf |
Rights | University of Fort Hare |
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