Emotional intelligence: concepts and models

The first principle

Emotions are not the enemy of good judgement; they are information about ourselves and others. Emotional intelligence (EI) is the capacity to read that information accurately and use it well, instead of being ruled by it or ignoring it. A person with high EI still feels anger or fear, but notices it, understands where it comes from, and chooses what to do with it.

The core

• The definition that started the field: Peter Salovey and John Mayer, in 1990, described EI as the ability to monitor one's own and others' feelings and emotions, to tell them apart, and to use that information to guide thinking and action.
• The roots are older. E. L. Thorndike wrote of "social intelligence" in 1920, and Howard Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences (1983) included interpersonal and intrapersonal intelligence.
• The popular turn: Daniel Goleman's book Emotional Intelligence (1995) took the idea to a mass audience and to workplaces, and the shorthand EQ, for emotional quotient, spread with it.
• Three families of models now exist, which differ on whether EI is a skill, a personality trait or a mix of both, and therefore on how it should be measured.

Dimensions

• Ability model (Mayer and Salovey): EI is a form of intelligence, organised in four branches that run from perceiving emotions to managing them. It is tested like intelligence, with questions that have better and worse answers, through the Mayer Salovey Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT).
• Mixed model (Goleman, and Reuven Bar On): EI combines abilities with traits and work competencies. Goleman's five components are the version most used in answers, while Bar On's Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ i), published in 1997, measures it by self report.
• Trait model (K. V. Petrides and colleagues): EI is a set of self perceptions that sits within personality, so it is measured by questionnaires such as the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire (TEIQue).

In practice

• EQ and IQ. Intelligence quotient (IQ) predicts how well a person learns and reasons, and it largely decides entry to demanding jobs. EI matters more in how well a person then works with others, leads, and copes with pressure. Goleman argued that IQ alone does not explain success in life, but researchers have criticised such claims as overstated, so the safer view is that the two complement each other.
• Can EI be learned? The evidence differs by model. Ability EI behaves partly like a skill and can be raised by practice, while trait EI, being part of personality, changes more slowly. Goleman argues that self awareness, self regulation and empathy can be developed through feedback, coaching and reflection, and many training programmes, including those for civil servants, rest on that view.
• Examples: an officer who keeps a short daily log of what made her angry and why is training self awareness. A trainee who practises a hearing by role play, and gets feedback on tone and listening, is training social skill.

Issues and way forward

• Measurement is weak, because self report tests can be faked and the mixed models overlap heavily with personality. Use ability based tests, or 360 degree feedback from colleagues and citizens, where EI is assessed for selection or promotion.
• The concept is stretched when every desirable quality is labelled EI. Keep to a clear model and its named components in answers.
• EI is ethically neutral. The same skills that comfort can also manipulate, which is taken up in the note on emotional intelligence in administration.

Common confusions

• Emotional intelligence and emotionality. High EI does not mean showing many feelings. It means handling them well, which often looks calm.
• Empathy and EI. Empathy is one component of EI, not the whole of it. Self awareness and self regulation come first in Goleman's order.
• Ability and trait EI. Ability EI is what you can do with emotions, tested by performance. Trait EI is how you see yourself, tested by self report, and the two correlate only modestly.

For the exam

• Keyword bank: emotional intelligence, EQ, ability model, four branch model, MSCEIT, mixed model, Goleman, Bar On, EQ i, trait model, TEIQue, self awareness, self regulation, empathy, social skill.
• Previous year questions: Practise the previous year questions on this topic →
• Introduction lines:
  • Since Salovey and Mayer first defined emotional intelligence in 1990, it has moved from a psychology journal into civil service training worldwide.
  • Goleman's 1995 book made the case that how people handle emotions shapes success as much as how well they reason.
• Conclusion lines:
  • IQ decides what an officer can understand, while EI decides how well that understanding reaches people.
  • Because its components can be practised, emotional intelligence is less a gift than a discipline.