Modeling Rational Decision-Making Based on Adolescents’ Executive Functions and Examining the Mediating Role of Emotional Intelligence and Moral Judgment

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, Allameh Tabataba'i. University, Tehran, Iran.

2 Ph.D. Student in Educational Psychology Allameh Tabataba'i. University, Tehran, Iran.

3 Ph.D. Student in Educational Psychology Lorestan. University, Koramabad, Iran.

Abstract

Introduction and Objective: The present study aimed to investigate the role of Cognitive abilities in predicting rational decision-making among adolescents, considering the mediating role of emotional intelligence and moral judgment. Rational decision-making, as one of the key processes of cognitive development in adolescence, plays a crucial role in personal, social, and academic adjustment. Given that adolescence is accompanied by extensive biological, cognitive, and emotional changes, identifying underlying factors influencing rational decision-making is of particular importance.
Research Methodology: This study employed a quantitative, correlational design using structural equation modeling (SEM). The statistical population consisted of lower secondary school students in Yazd during the 2024–2025 academic year, from which a sample was selected through cluster random sampling. Research instruments included the General Decision-Making Styles Questionnaire (GDMS), the Cognitive Functions Questionnaire, the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire–Short Form (TEIQue-SF), and the Moral Judgment Questionnaire. Data were analyzed using AMOS-24 software.
Findings: Findings indicated that Cognitive abilities directly predicted rational decision-making (β=0.17, P<0.05). Furthermore, emotional intelligence and moral judgment significantly mediated this relationship (β=0.308, P<0.002). In other words, adolescents with higher Cognitive abilities also demonstrated higher levels of emotional intelligence and moral judgment, which in turn contributed to the enhancement of their rational decision-making.
Conclusion: The results highlight the importance of an integrated approach to cognitive, emotional, and moral processes in understanding adolescent decision-making and may provide a basis for designing educational and counseling interventions aimed at improving adolescents’ decision-making skills.

Keywords

References

احمدی ازغندی، علی؛ فراست معمار، فرامرز؛ تقوی، سیدحسن؛ و ابوالحسنی؛ آزاده. (1385). روایی و اعتبار پرسشنامه رگه هوش هیجانی پترایدز و فارنهام.
حسینی، مریم السادات، حسینی، منیر. (1399). نقش توانایی شناختی و ریسک‌پذیری در پیش‌بینی سبک تصمیم‌گیری دانشجویان. مجله روان‌شناسی و روانپزشکی شناخت، 7(2)، 115-104.
سلیمی، آرش؛ هاشمی نصرت‎آباد، تورج؛ و خانجانی، زینب. (1402). روابط علّی استحکام ساختاری من و روابط بافتی (جو عاطفی خانواده، ارتباط با همسالان و پیوند با مدرسه) با رفتار خودآسیب‎رسانی در نوجوانان با میانجی‏گری تنظیم هیجان.
شیروی، الهه؛ متقی، شکوفه؛ و مرادی، افسانه. (1402). مدل یابی رابطه بین نظریه ذهن و توانایی شناختی (انعطاف پذیری شناختی و بازداری پاسخ) در نوجوانان: نقش میانجی هوش هیجانی، 11(1)، 15-1.
صالح‌نژاد، بهرستاقی؛ و صابر، حیدری پرچکوهی. (1401). تاثیر آموزش مجازی بر قضاوت اخلاقی دانش آموزان در دوران همه گیری بیماری کرونا. فصلنامه ایده‌های نوین روان‌شناسی، 14(18)، 1-15.
فرخ‎سیری، یسنا؛ سعیدمنش، محسن؛ و عزیزی، مهدیه. (1402). اثربخشی بازتوانی شناختی مبتنی‌بر کامپیوتر بر بهبود نارسایی شناختی نوجوانان مبتلا به اختلال اضطراب فراگیر. مطالعات روان‌شناسی بالینی. 14(51)، 90-61. https://doi.org/10.22054/jcps.2024.65028.2676
کمالی‎نسب، زهرا؛ کوشکی، شیرین؛ محمداورکی، شکوه‎السادات؛ و اورکی، محمد. (1401). مقایسه اثربخشی درمان شناختی – رفتاری و ذهن‎آگاهی بر کیفیت خواب و توانایی‎های شناختی زنان مبتلا به بی‎خوابی. مطالعات روان‌شناسی بالینی. 13(48). 84-57. https://doi.org/10.22054/jcps.2023.64561.2666
نجاتی، وحید. (1392). پرسشنامه توانایی‌های شناختی: طراحی و بررسی خصوصیات روان سنجی. تازه‌های علوم شناختی، 2، 15(58)، 11-19.
Aizpitarte, A., Atherton, O.E., Zheng, L.R., Alonso ‐Arbiol, I & Robins, R.W. (2019). Developmental precursors of relational aggression from late childhood through adolescence. Child Developmental.
Beling, C., & Wild, G. (2024). The association between emotional intelligence and decision making for pilots. Journal of Air Transport Management, 114, 102506.‏
Blakemore, S. J. (2018). Inventing ourselves: The secret life of the teenage brain. Hachette UK.‏
Brackett, M. A., Rivers, S. E., & Salovey, P. (2011). Emotional intelligence: Implications for personal, social, academic, and workplace success. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 5(1), 88–103.
Crone, E. A., & Dahl, R. E. (2012). Understanding adolescence as a period of social–affective engagement and goal flexibility. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 13(9), 636–650.
Diamond, A. (2013). Executive functions. Annual review of psychology, 64(1), 135-168.
Diamond, A. D. E. L. E. (2016). Why improving and assessing Cognitive abilities early in life is critical.‏
Dilawar, S. M., Durrani, D. K., Li, X., & Anjum, M. A. (2021). Decision-making in highly stressful emergencies: The interactive effects of trait emotional intelligence. Current psychology, 40(6), 2988-3005.‏
Fallon, C. K., Matthews, G., Panganiban, A. R., Wohleber, R., & Roberts, R. D. (2013, September). Emotional intellegence and decision making under stress. In Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting (Vol. 57, No. 1, pp. 873-877). Sage CA: Los Angeles, CA: SAGE Publications.‏
Gibbs, J. C. (2019). Moral development and reality: Beyond the theories of Kohlberg, Hoffman, and Haidt. Oxford University Press.‏
Gross, J. J. (Ed.). (2007). Handbook of emotion regulation. Guilford Press
Gutiérrez-Cobo, M. J., Cabello, R., & Fernández-Berrocal, P. (2016). The relationship between emotional intelligence and cool and hot cognitive processes: A systematic review. Frontiers in behavioral neuroscience, 10, 101.‏
Harenski, C. L., Harenski, K. A., Shane, M. S., & Kiehl, K. A. (2012). Neural development of mentalizing in moral judgment from adolescence to adulthood. Developmental cognitive neuroscience, 2(1), 162–173. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dcn.2011.09.002
Hurtado, M. M., Triviño, M., Arnedo, M., Roldán, G., & Tudela, P. (2016). Are Cognitive abilitiesrelated to emotional intelligence? A correlational study in schizophrenia and borderline personality disorder. Psychiatry Research, 246, 84-88.‏
Icenogle, G., & Cauffman, E. (2021). Adolescent decision making: A decade in review. Journal of research on adolescence, 31(4), 1006-1022.‏
Kohlberg, L. (1984). Essays on moral development: Vol. 2. The psychology of moral development. Harper & Row.
Krettenauer, T. (2020). Moral identity as a goal of moral action: A Self-Determination Theory perspective. Journal of Moral Education, 49(3), 330-345.
Mayer, J. D., Caruso, D. R., & Salovey, P. (2016). The ability model of emotional intelligence: Principles and updates. Emotion Review, 8(4), 290–300.
Moradi, A. , Yazdanbakhsh, K. and Mahdian, Z. (2023). Examining the Relationship between Executive Functions and MoralJudgment with the Mediation of Theory of Mind of 9-11-Year-Old Children in Ilam City. Social Cognition, 12(23), 53-65. https://doi.org/10.30473/sc.2023.69269.2919
Ndawo, G. (2021). Facilitation of emotional intelligence for the purpose of decision-making and problem-solving among nursing students in an authentic learning environment: A qualitative study. International Journal of Africa Nursing Sciences, 15, 100375. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijans.2021.100375
Sambol, S., Suleyman, E., & Ball, M. (2025). The roles of ability emotional intelligence in predicting affective decision-making. BMC Psychology, 13(1), 503.‏
Schneider, T. R., Lyons, J. B., & Khazon, S. (2013). Emotional intelligence and resilience. Personality and Individual Differences, 55(8), 909–914. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2013.07.460
Shulman, E. P., Harden, K. P., Chein, J. M., & Steinberg, L. (2016). The development of impulse control and sensation‐seeking in adolescence: Independent or interdependent processes?. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 26(1), 37-44.‏
Steinberg, L. (2020). Adolescence (12th ed.). McGraw-Hill Education.
Temircan, Z. (2022). Assessment of executive functioning and social emotional learning among adolescents. Psikiyatride Güncel Yaklaşımlar, 14(Suppl. 1), 286-292.‏
Wang, Z., & Zhou, Y. (2023). Relationship between decision-making and executive function in conditions of age, risk, and decision-making styles. In The International Conference on Interdisciplinary Humanities and Communication Studies (pp. 29-34).‏
Wolf, E. J., Harrington, K. M., Clark, S. L., & Miller, M. W. (2013). Sample size requirements for structural equation models: An evaluation of power, bias, and solution propriety. Educational and psychological measurement, 73(6), 913-934.‏
Zelazo, P. D., & Carlson, S. M. (2020). The neurodevelopment of executive function skills: Implications for academic achievement gaps. Psychology & Neuroscience, 13 (3), 273–298.‏
Clinical Psychology Studies
Volume 16, Issue 59
June 2025
Pages 91-104

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics