James Kierstead (1)
Research Directorate
Policy, Research and Communications Branch
Public Service Commission
of Canada
1999
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Issue Summary
Over the past several years, the term Emotional Intelligence has received
much attention as a factor that is potentially useful in understanding and
predicting individual performance at work. This paper examines the roots of the
emotional intelligence movement and issues surrounding its application in human
resource management.
Background
The term Emotional Intelligence first appeared in a series of academic
articles authored by John D. Mayer and Peter Salovey (1990, 1993). These
publications generated little attention. Two years later, the term emotional
intelligence entered the mainstream with Daniel Goleman's 1995 best-seller Emotional
Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ and subsequent articles in USA
Weekend and Time Magazine (October 2, 1995). More recently, Goleman's latest
book, Working With Emotional Intelligence (1998), has caught the
attention of human resource practitioners.
What is Emotional Intelligence?
The concept of emotional intelligence is an umbrella term that captures a
broad collection of individual skills and dispositions, usually referred to as
soft skills or inter and intra-personal skills, that are outside the traditional
areas of specific knowledge, general intelligence, and technical or professional
skills. Most of the authors on the topic note that in order to be a well
adjusted, fully functioning member of society (or family member, spouse,
employee, etc.), one must possess both traditional intelligence (IQ) and
emotional intelligence (dubbed EQ). Emotional intelligence involves being aware
of emotions and how they can affect and interact with traditional intelligence
(e.g., impair or enhance judgement, etc.). This view fits well with the commonly
held notion that it takes more than just brains to succeed in life - one must
also be able to develop and maintain healthy interpersonal relationships. Taken
from this perspective, emotional intelligence is nothing new.
According to Mayer and Salovey (1993):
Emotional Intelligence allows us to think more creatively and to use our
emotions to solve problems. Emotional Intelligence probably overlaps to some
extent with general intelligence.
The emotionally intelligent person is skilled in four areas: Identifying
emotions, using emotions, understanding emotions, and regulating emotions.
Goleman (1995) takes a somewhat broader position in describing emotional
intelligence. In his writings, emotional intelligence consists of five factors:
Knowing one's emotions, managing emotions, motivating oneself, recognizing
emotions in others, and handling relationships.
Emotional Intelligence at Work
In Working With Emotional Intelligence, Goleman applies the
emotional intelligence concept to the workplace setting. In this analysis, he
argues that the emotionally intelligent worker is skilled in two key areas he
presents in his emotional competence framework. These are "personal
competence" - how we manage ourselves, and "social competence " -
how we manage relationships. Each broad area consists of a number specific
competencies, as outlined in the table below. Examples and the complete model
(including sub-competencies) are available in Goleman's book, or at the web-site
for the Emotional Intelligence Research
Consortium, founded by Goleman.
Personal Competence
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Social Competence
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Self Awareness
(of internal states, preferences, resources, and intuitions)
Self Regulation
(of internal states, impulses, and resources)
Motivation
(tendencies that facilitate reaching goals)
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Empathy
(awareness of others feelings, needs, and concerns)
Social Skills
(adept at inducing desireable responses in others)
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Analysis of the Situation
Is emotional intelligence as important as claimed? Can the concept be
successfully applied to human resource management issues? Many popular press
articles juxtapose emotional intelligence with traditional intelligence by
making claims -- usually attributed to Goleman or others -- such as the
following:
"...success at work is 80% dependent on emotional intelligence and
only 20% dependent on IQ," HR magazine, November 1997.
This claim, which is not unique in the popular press on EI, is somewhat of an
overstatement of the potential power of emotional intelligence. This reflects,
perhaps, a desire on the part of HR practitioners to find a construct other than
intelligence that can be used to further understand and predict performance at
work. As shown in the quotes below from Goleman (1995, p. 34) and Mayer and
Salovey, there is still much research to be done to determine the meaning of the
Emotional Intelligence and to find ways to apply the concept in human resource
management.
According to Goleman:
"At best IQ contributes about 20% to the factors that determine
life success, which leaves 80% to other forces...No one can yet say exactly
how much of the variability from person to person in life's course it accounts
for. But what data exist suggest it can be as powerful, and at times more
powerful, than IQ."
In the promotional materials for their own emotional intelligence test, the
originators of the concept, Mayer and Salovey, provide the following
clarification regarding the role of emotional intelligence:
"In some ways, interest in Emotional Intelligence has been due in
part to a backlash against claims that general intelligence - IQ - is the key
to success. We know that IQ does predict academic achievement and occupational
status, but it still only predicts about 20% of personal variation in these
areas. Psychologists have yet to understand what predicts the other 80% of
success in these areas of life. We believe that Emotional Intelligence is one
of the abilities which are related to life success, but we are as yet unable
to determine just how important Emotional Intelligence is.
So, where does Emotional Intelligence fit in? Despite popular reports to
the contrary, there are few relevant studies on the matter to date. Our best
guess is that Emotional Intelligence will make a unique contribution in the 5%
to 10% range. It makes sense that Emotional Intelligence plays a role in our
friendships, parenting, and intimate relationships. Our research, to date, is
just beginning to examine these issues in depth."
Measuring Emotional Intelligence
In his 1995 book Goleman states that there may never be a valid or reliable
measure of EI. To validate such an instrument would be a very difficult task
given that emotional intelligence is more or less an umbrella concept. However,
Goleman, in partnership with the Hay Group consultancy, is in the process of
developing a 360 feedback tool to assess the components of EI that apply to the
workplace, based on the emotional competencies outlined above. This tool
is intended primarily for use in career and personal development, rather than in
employee selection. Several other instruments have appeared claiming to provide
a measure of EI (the Bar-On EQ-i, Mayer and Salovey's Emotional IQ test, Essi
Systems EQ-Map), and claiming to be appropriate for employee selection.
The jury is still out on these tools and others. It is important to note
that, there is little validation research available for these instruments.
Therefore, claims of utility in the organizational context (from staffing
to counselling to downsizing applications) should be viewed with some caution.
There is, however, an opportunity and need for research evaluating these
instruments with respect to their applicability to the public sector context. It
is encouraging that the Emotional
Intelligence Consortium, lead by Goleman, is taking steps to address some of
the more fundamental research questions surrounding emotional intelligence. The
concept may well prove useful in helping to further understand and identify the
personal, non-cognitive qualities that will be required of public sector leaders
in the future. Additionally, it is also possible that Emotional Intelligence,
once better understood, will show a relationship to more generally accepted
measures of personality. Indeed, EI may turn out to be a subset of personality
that can be assessed by instruments that have already been well validated.
Overall Evaluation
At present, there is little in the way of published, fundamental research
that examines either emotional intelligence or its measurement. However, this is
a very interesting and potentially powerful area that bears watching. The
emotional intelligence movement has some of the earmarks of a fad and is not
without controversy. The popular press, if it is any indicator of professional
sentiment, suggests that the HR community is generally supportive of the EI
concept while the training community is quite sceptical. Personnel psychologist
seem mildly curious in EI, noting that the idea is not particularly new. The
following quotes from recent articles demonstrate the views of those on both
sides of the interest in this topic.
From HR Magazine:
What characteristic most distinguishes star performers from average
workers? If you said IQ, you answered incorrectly.
In more scientific terms, EI can be defined as an array of non-cognitive
abilities and competencies that influence a person's ability to cope with
environmental demands and pressures. (Nov 1997, p. 72)
From Training:
According to Goleman, an individual's quotient of emotional
intelligence, or EQ, may actually predict success more accurately than IQ.
That's a seductive proposition...but it's as full of holes as Swiss cheese.
EQ has a friendlier feel to it - nice guys finish first at last - but
its far from warm and fuzzy. For one thing, attempts to measure it are
alarmingly facile. (Jan 1996, p. 8)
EQ is a fictitious measure of everything, other than IQ, that helps us
get ahead in the world....The term emotional quotient, which conflates EQ with
IQ, is fictitious in the sense that no accepted test has been devised to
determine a person's EQ. The term EQ came not from scientific research but
from an EQ Quiz published in USA Today last year, a fact that speaks volumes
about where the interest in EQ is likely to lead. (April 1996, p. 50)
From Personnel Psychology:
To what extent is EI of use to managers, teachers, researchers, parents,
or the general public? That remains a pressing question. Goleman would have us
believe that EI explains almost everything. If that is the case, then perhaps
it really explains nothing. As an umbrella concept, it includes many well
known psychological constructs that have already been thoroughly investigated.
(Autumn 1996, p. 711)
Conclusion
The whole area of non-cognitive factors as related to performance at work
(e.g., personality, emotional intelligence, creativity, etc.) certainly presents
an opportunity for ongoing research by the Public Service Commission. It is
broadly recognized that non-cognitive factors are important determinants of work
behaviour, especially in a rapidly changing work environment. What remains is to
determine which constructs and assessment methods offer value, contribute to
merit based staffing, and increase understanding of job performance in the
public sector context.
Given the lack of research available to date, it would be premature to
integrate specific measures of emotional intelligence in to staffing practices
in the federal Public Service. This area of study is not yet developed to the
point where it can to be used for administrative decision-making. However, most
of the emotional competencies proposed by Goleman are not new to human resource
practitioners, and have already appeared as elements of various competency
profiles that are currently in use.
At a minimum, the emotional intelligence concept is useful for individuals
interested in learning about the role of emotions in work and everyday life and
how interpersonal relationships affect work and organizational performance, and
should prove useful for personal development and insight.
For those interested in further reading on this topic, a list
of internet resources is provided below.
EQ Institute
http://eqi.org/
The Emotional Intelligence Research Consortium
http://www.eiconsortium.org/
American Society of Training and Development -
Interview with Daniel Goleman, OCT 1998
http://www.astd.org/astd/publications/td_magazine/
References
- Blackburn, R. (1997). Book review ( Goleman - Emotional Intelligence: Why
It Can Matter More Than IQ). Personnel Psychology, 49(3), 711-714.
- Goleman, Daniel (1995). Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More
Than IQ. New York: Bantam Books.
- Goleman, Daniel (1998). Working With Emotional Intelligence. New York;
Bantam Books.
- Lee, C. (1996). Et-tu, EQ?. Training, January, p. 8.
- Mayer, J. D. & Salovey, P. (1995). Emotional intelligence and the
construction and regulation of feelings. Applied & Preventive
Psychology, 4(3), 197-208.
- Mayer, J. D. & Salovey, P. (1993). The intelligence of emotional
intelligence. Intelligence, 17(4), 433-442.
- Salovey, P. & Mayer, J.D. (1990). Emotional intelligence. Imagination,
Cognition, and Personality, 9, 185-211.
- Neely-Martinez, M. (1997). The smarts that count. HR Magazine,
November, pp. 71-78.
- Stamps, D. (1996). Are we smart enough for our jobs?. Training,
April, pp. 44-50.
Note
1. The views expressed in this document are those of the
author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Public Service Commission.
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