Is culture the key? Emotional intelligence, autonomous motivation and physical activity of student-athletes from China and Russia

Emotional intelligence is considered as an important factor impacting on sports motivation of students-athletes. Meanwhile the role of culture in the development of emotional intelligence is still insufficiently studied in sports psychology. The purpose of the study included comparing the indicators of emotional intelligence of student-athletes in China and Russia, identifying the relationship between emotional intelligence, sports motivation and physical activity, as well as studying the prognostic effect of emotional intelligence on autonomous motivation. The research was done among 474 student- athletes. In Chinese students sample (