Acebes-Sánchez, JorgeGarcía-Naveira, AlejoConners, Ryan T.García-Merino, SoniaGarcía-Merino, Sonia2025-12-182025-12-182025-12Acebes-Sánchez, J, García-Naveira, A, Conners, R T & García-Merino, S 2025, 'Emotional intelligence as a predictor of mental health in undergraduate students', BMC psychology, vol. 13, no. 1, 1130. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-025-03241-72050-7283PubMedCentral: PMC12512798https://hdl.handle.net/10641/6683Publisher Copyright: © The Author(s) 2025.Background: The aim of this study was to analyze whether trait emotional intelligence statistically predicts mental health outcomes in university students. Method: Six hundred forty-seven undergraduate students from the Community of Madrid participated. The Trait Meta Mood Scale-24 (TMMS-24) was used to assess emotional intelligence, and the Global Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) was used to assess mental health. Student's t-analysis and ANOVA were performed for the comparative study, as well as multiple regression for the predictive analysis of emotional intelligence on mental health. Results: A multiple regression model was calculated to predict mental health in the total sample [F (4, 642) = 58.94, p ≤.001] with an R2 =.269. For males [F (3, 175) = 33.01, p ≤.001] with an R2 =.361. For females [F (4, 463) = 33.84, p ≤.001, R2 =.213] with an. Conclusions: The dimensions that make up emotional intelligence (attention, clarity, and emotional repair) predict mental health in university students in the Community of Madrid.1089356enghttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/Emotional IntelligenceGHQ-12Mental HealthTMMS-24University StudentsGeneral PsychologySDG 3 - Good Health and Well-beingJournal ArticleYesyesjournal articleopen access10.1186/s40359-025-03241-7https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105018398501https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105018398501#tab=citedBy