Background: Managing the academic and interpersonal demands of higher education requires effective emotional regulation. Emotional creativity, characterized by the capacity to experience and express novel, authentic, and adaptive emotions, is vital for student well-being. This study investigated the predictive roles of social intelligence and psychological hardiness in emotional creativity among university students. Methods: A descriptive correlational (cross-sectional) research design was utilized. The study included ۱۵۱ students (۱۰۳ females, ۴۸ males) selected using convenience sampling from Ahvaz Petroleum University, Iran, in ۲۰۲۴. Participants completed the Emotional Creativity Inventory, the Tromsø Social Intelligence Scale, and the Ahvaz Psychological Hardiness Scale. Data were analyzed using Pearson correlations and simultaneous multiple regression in SPSS version ۲۶. Results: The findings indicated significant positive correlations between social intelligence and emotional creativity (r = ۰.۴۰, P < ۰.۰۰۱) and between psychological hardiness and emotional creativity (r = ۰.۳۱, P < ۰.۰۰۱). The regression model demonstrated that social intelligence and psychological hardiness collectively accounted for ۲۷.۴% of the variance in emotional creativity (R² = ۰.۲۷۴, adjusted R² = ۰.۲۶۹, F = ۵۸.۲۳, P < ۰.۰۰۱). Conclusion: Social intelligence and psychological hardiness are significant predictors of emotional creativity. Enhancing social competencies and fostering resilient cognitive frameworks can promote adaptive emotional processing and provide a foundation for targeted psychological interventions in universities.

کلیدواژه ها:

Emotions ، Social intelligence ، Psychological hardiness ، Students