Looking for Signs of Emotional Intelligence

Emotional intelligence is a relatively new field of study. The concept was originally developed by researcher David McClelland of Harvard University. In “Testing for Competence Rather than Intelligence,” a paper he published in 1973, he argued that academic success, technical expertise and credentials do not guarantee success in life. Furthermore he proposed that traits like self-awareness, empathy, self-discipline and initiative are better predictors of personal and professional success. This set of traits has become known as emotional intelligence.

So what is emotional intelligence? “Emotional intelligence refers to the capacity to deal effectively with one’s own and others’ emotions. When applied to the workplace, it involves the capacity to effectively perceive, express, understand and manage emotions in a professional manner.” (Stough & Palmer, 2002)

Since the original work in the early 1970s, there has been a growing interest in this subject. In fact, Daniel Goleman’s book “Emotional Intelligence” is currently the highest selling social science book ever written.

Two factors are fueling this appetite for information: research linking emotional intelligence with personal and professional success; and research demonstrating that unlike I.Q. or personality, emotional intelligence can be developed or improved through training programs.

Research projects conducted on this subject find that people who have the ability to manage and eventually shift themselves and others from emotions like anger, frustration, disappointment and apathy to emotions like gratitude, hopefulness, satisfaction and empathy are measurably more productive and effective.

For example, take a salesperson who finds out she didn’t get a big new account she had been working on for six months. Understandably, she is very disappointed. Later that same day, she has a presentation with another prospective account. It makes sense that if she goes into the second meeting still suffering from her disappointment she will be less effective. Maybe it will show up as a lack of enthusiasm or an inability to focus; in either case, she will be at a disadvantage. However, if she can shift from being disappointed to being hopeful, her actions will reflect the new attitude and the likelihood of success is much greater.

There is a growing body of research that indicates improving a person’s emotional intelligence is certainly possible. However, the design of the training program is critical to a participant’s progress. The training process for emotional intelligence development should include four phases: Creating awareness; identifying alternative strategies or approaches; practice (apply alternatives strategies or approaches) and feedback (evaluate if changes were effective and appropriate).

The Emotional Intelligence Consortium publishes a list of 23 best practices for EI training. These practices include:

1. Assessing the organization’s needs.
2. Assessing the individual.
3. Delivering assessments with care.
4. Maximizing learner choice.
5. Encouraging people to participate.
6. Linking learning goals to personal values.
7. Adjusting expectations.
8. Gauging readiness.
9. Doing the work of change.
10. Fostering a positive relationship between the trainers and learners.

What effect can emotional intelligence play in your agency? Consider this sample data from the EI Consortium report “A Business Base for Emotional Intelligence”:

“After supervisors in a manufacturing plant received training in emotional competencies such as how to listen better and help employees resolve problems on their own, lost-time accidents were reduced by 50%, formal grievances were reduced from an average of 15 per year to three per year, and the plant exceeded productivity goals by $250,000 (Pesuric & Byham, 1996). In another manufacturing plant where supervisors received similar training, production increased 17%. There was no such increase in production for a group of matched supervisors who were not trained (Porras & Anderson, 1981).”

Jim White, CEC (jim@inside-first.com), is founder of Inside First, a company that provides information, training programs and presentations on emotional intelligence.