Emotional Intelligence in Carriers of Different СОМТ, BDNF, DRD2 and HTR2A Genotypes

Psychology in Russia: State of the Art. 2022. Vol. 15(2). P. 83–96.

Vorobyeva E., Kovsh E., Kosonogov V.

Background. Emotional intelligence is the ability to quickly and correctly recognize the expression of emotions by other people, to express and manage one’s own emotions. It contributes to the success of a person in various fields of activity, related to communication and interaction with people. Emotional intelligence has been studied largely in the context of organizational and education psychology, but less is known about genetic influences on it. Objective. We aim to study emotional intelligence in carriers of different СОМТ, BDNF, DRD2, HTR2A genotypes. Design. We used three methods to measure emotional intelligence. Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test is a set of tasks with forced choice and frequency-based correct responses. We also applied two self-report questionnaires by Lyusin and Hall. We recruited 280 participants who passed through all three measures. We also identified their genotypes of СОМТ, BDNF, DRD2, HTR2A genes. Results. The carriers of Val/Met genotype of COMT gene, A/A genotype of HTR2A gene and C/C genotype of DRD2 gene showed the highest level of emotional intelligence, while no differences were found between carriers of BDNF genotypes. All these data were obtained only for Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test. Self-report scores of emotional intelligence did not differ between carriers of different genotypes of all four genes under study. Conclusion. Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test scores were influenced by some genotypes, whereas self-report emotional intelligence scores did not differ between carriers of different genotypes.

Keywords: BDNF, behavioral genetics, emotional intelligence, СОМТ, DRD2, HTR2A