The Impact of a 12-Week School-Based Mindfulness Programme on Emotional Intelligence: A Cross-National Study of Primary and Secondary Students in Spain and Italy

In recent decades, the educational landscape has undergone rapid transformations, highlighting emotional intelligence (EI) and mindfulness as key constructs for students’ well-being and adaptation. This study examines the impact of a structured 12-week school-based mindfulness programme on emotional intelligence in a cross-national sample of students. The sample comprised 207 participants (52.7% from Spain and 47.3% from Italy). In Spain, the mean age was 8.65 years (SD = 0.36) in primary education and 13.71 years (SD = 0.49) in secondary education; in Italy, the mean age was 8.09 years (SD = 0.30) and 13.33 years (SD = 0.43), respectively. Using a quasi-experimental repeated-measures design, EI was assessed at pre-test, post-test, and 5-month follow-up with the EQ-i:YV and analysed using General Linear Models. In line with these objectives, results indicated no significant increase in global EI (p > .05), although small, domain-specific effects emerged (η2p ≈ .03–.09). Italian primary students showed improvements in General Mood and Interpersonal Competence, while Italian secondary students displayed delayed gains in Stress Management. No significant effects were observed in Spanish subsamples or in Adaptability and Intrapersonal Competence. These findings indicate modest, context-dependent effects, with limited and context-dependent educational implications.