Table of Contents
Executive Summary 2
Introduction 3
Body of the Paper
Theory of Mayer and Salovey 3
Definition of Emotional Intelligence 3
Models and Applications 4
Theory of Goleman 6
Definition of Emotional Intelligence 6
Models 7
Limitations of Models 8
Analysis of Emotional Intelligence and Behavior at Work 9
Test 1 10
Test 2 11
Recommendation and Improved Emotional Intelligence at Work 12
Conclusion 15
Executive Summary
Emotional intelligence is an integral component of an individual and thus, is important to study and evaluate, to develop and maximize its use. The proper utilization of emotional intelligence determines the success of many individuals in the workplace. This paper seeks to study and discuss the emotional intelligence theories of three authors. The significance of these theories will be evaluated in relation to its relevance in the workplace environment.
Managing People: Theories and Models of Emotional Intelligence
Introduction
(1999) defines emotional intelligence being an intelligence or a set of abilities, and one of the many important components in the determining workplace success, career satisfaction or leadership effectiveness. It enhances the success of individuals, but does not guarantee it in the absence of other suitable skills and competencies. Emotions are important in the workplace because its use can determine the success or failure of an individual in the job, and convey critical information, which an individual need to be effective in his or her work. Intelligence or IQ is important, for it enhances an individual’s competitiveness, by focusing on the development of one’s emotional intelligence or EQ. Emotional intelligence plays an important role in many areas of our lives, for this can be a basis in the career development, in the decision-making process, in the motivation of employees, and in the management of a business. It can become a basis for choosing a job in relation to the right application of emotional intelligence, or with the employee, career, and team development in an organization (1999). The proper application and utilization of emotional intelligence can become effective to achieve success in an organization, and this application will be evaluated using the different theories of emotional intelligence. The objective of this paper is to discuss the importance of emotional intelligence, including the concepts related to it.
Body of the Paper
Theory of Mayer and Salovey
There are many definitions associated with emotional intelligence, in relation to the different and several understandings and interpretations of people. Because of these various understandings and interpretations, several theories were developed regarding the meaning and models of emotional intelligence.
Jack Mayer and Peter Salovey were the originators of the theory of emotional intelligence, and their model is an ability model, which defines emotional intelligence as the ability to reason with, and about emotions, for it combines feelings with thinking, and thinking with feeling (1999).
“Emotional intelligence is the ability to perceive emotions, to access and generate emotions so as to assist thought, to understand emotions and emotional knowledge, and to reflectively regulate emotions so as to promote emotional and intellectual growth” (1999).
The model of Mayer and Salovey includes three domains, namely, appraisal and expression of emotion, regulation of emotion, and utilization of emotion (2001). The appraisal and expression of emotion involves the ability to perceive accurately, assess and communicate emotion in self and in others; the regulation of emotion involves the ability of an individual to control emotions to promote emotional and intellectual growth; and the utilization of emotion involves the ability to access and generate feelings when they facilitate thought, and the ability to understand emotion and emotional knowledge (2006). The utilization of emotion involves flexible planning, creative thinking, redirected attention, and motivation of the individual (2001). In addition, the Mayer and Salovey ability model of emotional intelligence defines a set of skills, or competencies, which provide HR professionals, managers, and any one in the world of work, with a comprehensive tool to define, measure and develop emotional skills, and is divided into four models. These include identifying emotions, or the ability to correctly identify how people are feeling. This aspect is becoming aware of one’s and other’s feelings and emotions, as a key to working with people in an organization. The second aspect is using emotions, or the ability to create emotions and to integrate one’s feelings into the way one thinks. By using the ability to generate moods or emotions, creative ideas and empathy towards others can be produced. Third is understanding emotions, which is the ability to understand the causes of emotions. This is knowing what motivates people, understanding their points of view, and handling team interactions. The last aspect is managing emotions, or the ability to figure out effective strategies that use one’s emotions to help the person achieve a goal, rather than being used by his or her emotions. This is involves becoming aware of certain emotions, such as sadness, anger, anxiety or joy, which have valuable information, and using them to solve problems (1999).
The theory and models of Mayer and Salovey will not be relevant and significant without its application in the workplace. One application of emotional intelligence is in career development. (1999) emphasizes that some jobs do not require a great deal of emotional intelligence, such as jobs that can be accomplished individually or in teams, while some jobs put a person in contact with other people, and involve working in informal teams, or require one to empathize with and understand others. The book entitled Career Smarts: Jobs with a Future by career expert discusses the role of emotional intelligence in careers and rates its level required for each of these careers (1999). Another application is in management development, for emotional intelligence can help managers in terms of flexible planning, which involves changing plans, adapting to the situation, and coming up with alternate plans or a variety of possible actions; motivating themselves and others, to keep people going, to get them to try again after failing and to get things done; and in decision-making, to improve their thinking, to make good, solid decisions, and to balance thoughts and feelings (1999).
The third application is team effectiveness. The skills of emotional intelligence become more important to a job, for it results to working effectively and efficiently with others, and in generating new and creative ideas and solutions to problems. Emotional intelligence helps a team think creatively, by viewing problems from multiple perspectives, by generating fresh, inventive, and original ideas, and by creating new solutions. Emotional intelligence also develops social effectiveness, which allows the team to accomplish goals by working with other people. Lastly, the fourth application is in terms of selection, where hiring decisions can be better informed through the use of a thorough job analysis and an ability-based measure of emotional intelligence through standard personality tests (1999).
Theory of Daniel Goleman
Another famous and relevant theory about emotional intelligence is the theory proposed by Daniel Goleman. Goleman is the author who has popularized the term ‘emotional intelligence’ in 1995, by publishing the book entitled ‘Working with Emotional Intelligence’.
According to the theory of Goleman, emotional intelligence is defined as the capacity of an individual to recognize their own feelings and those of others, for motivating themselves, and for managing emotions well in themselves and in their relationships (2002). In addition, it refers to how an individual handles his or her own feelings, how well one empathizes and get along with other people, which is just a key human skill (2001). Moreover, he detailed his belief that emotional intelligence can sometimes be more powerful than intelligence or IQ that it can contribute greatly to several important life outcomes, including improved learning, less aggression, better decision-making, and many other characteristics that imply successful living. In addition, Goleman claimed that increasing one’s emotional intelligence leads to an advantage in any domain in life (2006). Personal benefits of emotional intelligence include greater career success, a stronger personal relationship, an increased optimism and confidence, and better health. Professional benefits include effective leadership skills, improved communication, less workplace conflicts, better problem solving skills, and increased likelihood of getting a raise or promotion.
In relation to the idea of emotional intelligence is the idea of emotional competence, which is defined by Goleman as the personal and social skills that lead to superior performance in the world of work (2002). It is a learned capability based on emotional intelligence that results in outstanding performance at work, for one’s emotional intelligence determines his or her potential for learning the practical skills based on the five elements or models, namely, self-awareness, motivation, self-regulation, empathy, and adeptness in relationships. In addition, one’s emotional competence shows how much of that potential an individual has translated into on-the-job capabilities (2006).
Goleman’s model of emotional intelligence is divided into two groups, the Personal competencies, which underlie self-awareness, self-regulation and motivation, and the Social competencies, which underlies empathy and social skills. Self-awareness involves recognizing one’s emotions and their effects, knowing one’s strengths and limits, and sureness about one’s self-worth and capabilities 2004). It is the ability to understand an individual’s own moods, emotions, and needs, as well as his or her impact on others. People having this competencies find it easy to talk about their feelings with colleagues, colleagues can easily tell how they are feeling, and have little trouble finding the right words to express their emotions or feelings at work (). Self-regulation or self-management involves managing disruptive emotions and impulses, maintaining standards of honesty and integrity, taking responsibility for personal performance, flexibility in handling change, and being comfortable with and open to original ideas and new information (2004). It is the ability to effectively control strong emotions and react appropriately, which can be observed by overcoming anger at work through thinking what’s causing it, finding it easy to concentrate on a task when really excited about something else, being upset at work and still thinking clearly, and remaining focused although anxious (). Self-motivation involves striving to improve or meet a standard of excellence, aligning with the goals of the group or organization, the readiness to act on opportunities, and the persistence in pursuing goals despite obstacles and setbacks. People having these competencies are results-oriented, with a high drive to meet their objectives and standards, readily make a personal or group sacrifices to meet a larger organizational goal, are ready to seize opportunities, and operate from hope of success rather than fear of failure (2004).
Social competence includes empathy and social skills. Empathy or social awareness involves sensing other’s feelings and perspectives and taking an active interest in their concerns, anticipating, recognizing and meeting customer’s needs, sensing what others need in order to develop and strengthen abilities, cultivating opportunities through diverse people, and reading a group’s emotional currents and power relationships. People having this competencies are attentive to emotional cues and listen well, understand customers’ needs and match them to services or products, acknowledge and reward people’s strengths, accomplishments, and development, respect and relate well to people from varied backgrounds, and understand the forces that shape views and actions of clients, customers, or competitors (2004). Social skills involves wielding effective tactics for persuasion, sending clear and convincing messages, inspiring and guiding groups of people, initiating or managing change, negotiating and resolving disagreements, nurturing instrumental relationships, working with others toward shared goals, and creating group synergy in pursuing collective goals. People having this competencies are skilled at persuasion, listen well, seek mutual understanding, and welcome sharing of information fully, articulate and arouse enthusiasm for a shared vision and mission, recognize the need for change and remove barriers, encourage debate and open discussion, make and maintain personal friendships among work associates, promote a friendly, cooperative climate, and draw all members into active and enthusiastic participation (2004).
Limitations of the Models
In relation to the two theories and its models, several limitations can be determined. The Mayer and Salovey models and test had performed well as a measure of the Four-Branch Model but had certain limitations, namely, its length and evident areas for scale improvement (2002). In addition, a study done by Dulewicz and Higgs also found certain limitations to the models. First, is the that the measure of IQ involves surrogates, such as Judgment, Creativity, and Risk-Taking, which have questionable or uncertain relationships to standard measures of intelligence. Second, some competencies, such as Self-Management, Initiative, and Risk-Taking belong in the EQ category, failing to reflect the full spectrum of emotional intelligence. The omission of several key competencies, such as any measure of Self-Awareness, seems to underestimate the effect of emotional intelligence on success (2001).
Moreover, limitations also include the fact that unlike IQ, emotional intelligence can be developed, depending on several factors. First, genetics play an important role in the development of emotional intelligence, as gene expression itself appears to be shaped by the social and emotional experiences of the individual. Emotional intelligence may be learned through life experience; however, without sustained effort and attention, improvement in emotional intelligence of individuals will be accomplished. Aside from the cognitive perspectives pertained to by the models, emotional intelligence competencies can also be developed. In addition, emotional intelligence can also be improved by developing and implementing an individualized learning plan to strengthen weak competencies (2003).
Analysis of Emotional Intelligence and Behavior at Work
The first test done is the Emotional Intelligence Diagnostic, which is a test done to evaluate my own and a peer’s emotional intelligence. A questionnaire was answered, having corresponding ratings, which will correspond to the four competencies of emotional intelligence. The emotional intelligence of the two participants will be interpreted in accordance to the meanings of the four competencies.
SA or Self-Awareness – This is the ability to understand one’s own emotions and to monitor one’s own feelings. People who are self-aware can report accurately on their emotional state and clearly understand why they react the way they do in all situations.
SM or Self-Management – It is the ability to manage one’s own emotions and to express them without losing control. Self-management skills enable people to accept criticism and avoid emotional reactivity during disagreements or when frustrated by others.
EM or Empathy – This is the ability to understand others’ emotions and to be tuned in to how they are feeling. People with this skill are able to adjust their own behavior as appropriate depending on another’s emotional state. They are also aware of the triggers for other people’s reactivity.
IS or Interpersonal Skills – People who have high levels of interpersonal skills are able to get along with everyone including difficult people. They are also to defuse situations where others lose emotional control and can also resolve conflict effectively.
(2001)
The results of the test indicate that both the participants got a score of 6.25 in terms of Self-Awareness. This means that both my peer and I have the ability to understand our own emotions and the ability to monitor our own feelings. In addition, both of us are emotionally aware, are able to identify our self-images, and are able to express our selves in various ways easily. In terms of Self-Management, I got a higher score of 7.50 compared to my peer who got 6.67. This means that my ability in managing my own emotions and expressing them is more developed than my peer, which maybe is affected by several factors. With Empathy, I got a higher score of 6.25, while my peer got 5.83. This can be interpreted as me, being more empathic than my peer, or having a more developed ability to understand the emotions of others. Similarly, this trait is also affected by several factors. Lastly, in terms of Interpersonal Skills, my score is significantly higher, with 6.25, compared to the score of my peer of 4.58. This means that I have a more developed interpersonal skill or the ability to get along with people.
To further show this difference, the Degree of Change should be evaluated. The score of the Degree of Change is 6.5, which shows the significant difference in the emotional intelligence of my peer and me. In addition, the score of the Degree of Complexity is 4, which means that my peer has the potential for further development. This difference can be brought about by several factors, including the influence of the environment, the culture, upbringing, family and relatives, education, religion, beliefs and attitudes towards certain circumstances and towards other people. In relation to the graph, the Degree of Complexity is simple and the Degree of Change is dynamic. ().
The second test done is the Personal Style Inventory, which enables an individual to assess his or her emotional intelligence by knowing his personality. This test includes the four pairs of dimensions, namely, Introversion-Extroversion, Intuition-Sensing, Feeling-Thinking, and Perceiving-Judging. These pairs are present to some degree in all people, and the strength of a dimension is indicated by the score for that dimension and will determine how closely the strengths and weaknesses described fit the participant’s personality (1969).
The results of the tests indicate that the participant who took the test is an ESTJ or a Stabilizer. The participant possesses traits of Extroversion-Sensing-Thinking-Judging. Being an ESTJ means that the person is practical, realistic, matter-of-fact, with a natural head for business or mechanics. The person is not interested in subjects for which they see no use, but can apply themselves when necessary. This person like to organize and run activities, is responsible and orderly, and loyal and steadfast. He or she may be impatient with others or impetuous, but likes to be involved in community activities (1969) Knowing the personality of an individual is important and presents several implications in the workplace. First, individuals, groups, and organizations must have a mixture of the different traits to emphasize the strengths of task-oriented groups in coming up with good decisions. Second, people should realize that many differences in beliefs, values, and actions of other individuals must be understood to be able to accept them and the value the perspective they share. Third, interacting with other types of people in the workplace enhances the maturity and productivity of employees, especially in boss-employee relationships. Fourth, being aware of various personalities and traits would help people to interact careful with others especially in their aim to accomplish tasks (1969). In addition, the codes provided by the personality style inventory gives the co-workers and the bosses of the participant to have a keen insight into how the person prefers to accomplish his or her part of the mission of the company, more than simply stating his or her gender, education, and abilities. It helps determine how people gain energy, filter information, make decisions, and organize their life. Moreover, the use of this test provides the employees better trainings and employee development programs in the company, addressing the individual needs and preferences of each worker (2005). In knowing the personality of colleagues and other individuals, a person can evaluate his or her own personality, which will be beneficial for the company as a whole. This would enable the company to aim on teamwork and build camaraderie among the employees of the company.
Recommendation and Improved Emotional Intelligence at Work
A human being can produce several emotions in response to several situations. These emotions include joy, anger, disappointment, and sorrow among many others. However, some emotions come to strong than others, and could require a good deal of management. In order to manage one’s own emotions, a practical technique can be used. This technique is the ROADE technique, which stands for Register and stop, Objectify the emotion, Analyze the trigger, Decide and act, and Evaluate.
Register and stop
This can be done first by recognizing or identifying the physical symptoms of the reaction. Physical symptoms include the rush of blood, a high heart rate, the surge of adrenaline, muscle tightening, trembling, and many others. Determining these physical symptoms can allow the person to assess his or her reaction to the situation. As soon as the person recognized his or her emotional reactivity, simply stop. In certain situations, find an excuse to stop speaking when already speaking, never reach for the phone, or even confront someone (2002).
Objectify the emotion
The second step is to feel the emotion so that the person can recognize it as anger, frustration, guilt or any other emotion. In this way, the person can separate from the emotion and its associated thoughts by using the concept of inner-awareness. Inner-awareness is being able to observe the emotional reaction as an object within one’s consciousness, to prevent emotional swamping or being consumed by the emotion, and to avoid identification with the emotion (2002).
Analyze the trigger
This is similar to the action-reaction response of Newton’s Laws of motion, as having a reaction to a certain trigger or cause of reaction. Several triggers can be the causes of reaction, such as experiences, threat, verbal abuse, and guilt among others (Hede 2002). If a person can learn to identify what triggers emotions, then it would be easier to control them.
Decide and act
This step enables the individual to choose whether to respond with a considered action, or react in terms of emotion. It has been reported that it is best to do nothing regarding the emotion, if a person cannot respond effectively, for a lack of response is better than an emotional outburst. What a person can do is to find a set of stock phrases to avoid having to respond and risk reacting (2002).
Evaluate (now and later)
In this step, it is important to check immediately whether the action taken by the person is appropriate, and adjust them if necessary. If the person finds that he or she have reacted rather than responded, then it is better to stop that reactive behavior. Later, he or she can reflect on the incident and discuss the reaction with someone, such as a mentor, relative or a friend, to develop insights to be used in the future (2002).
This recommendation can be used in certain situations, especially when a person is dealing with strong emotions such as anger. Anger is a strong emotion, and when not dealt with properly, it can cause the person to result to violence or other means. The steps provided by the ROADE technique are helpful for a person having such strong emotions, for the technique could somehow give these individuals the realization of focusing on the causes of the problem and its solution, rather than the emotion. In addition, this technique is not only applicable for negative emotions, such as anger, disappointment, depression or anxiety, but is also applicable with strong positive emotions, such as bliss, extreme happiness and excitement. These positive strong emotions can also become the causes of adverse reactions that could result to other situations. Similarly, reactions caused by strong positive emotions can affect the situation.
In addition, managing strong negative and positive emotions involve the person’s development and improvement of interpersonal skills. Interpersonal skills refer to mental and communicative algorithms applied during social communications and interactions in order to reach certain effects or results, and it is often used in the business contexts to refer to a person’s ability to operate within business organizations through social communication and interactions (2006). These skills are important to develop to be able to relate well to colleagues, but also to be incorporated in the whole personality of the person for self-improvement. (2002) reports key socio-emotional skills incorporated in interpersonal skills. These socio-emotional skills include empathy, active listening, diversity acceptance, and positive assertiveness. A person can exhibit empathy by continually monitoring and by continually being responsive to other’s emotions and needs. By being an active listener, the person consciously works at focusing attention on the speaker and not on one’s self. This entails understanding the speaker, and not just hearing them out. Diversity acceptance is becoming fully aware of the uniqueness of others, which requires constant vigilance against ‘love-of-sameness instinct’. It is exhibited by the genuine respect for ‘differentness’ and by welcoming other’s challenges to our mindset. Positive assertiveness is communicating confidently and obtaining what others want without annoying them. This trait is important in one’s effectiveness of obtaining the needs of other people, which would lead to providing efficient service (2002).
The importance of interpersonal skills can be seen through its application in the different and various aspects in the workplace. Interpersonal skills can be used in decision-making, for the abilities of an individual to interact and deal with others are helpful traits in making good decisions. Various forms of collaborative decision making provide the context for dialogue, and collaboration requires a different attitude going into meetings and a different form of interaction in meetings (2006). Interpersonal skills can also be used in team building and in working with groups, for in a workplace it is impossible to work along all throughout, so with good interpersonal skill, the person can interact effectively with others. This can be useful in coming up with new and creative ideas for the organization. In addition, interpersonal skills are also helpful in terms of conflict and crisis management. With developed interpersonal skills, organizations can solve their problems regarding employee conflicts, through effective and efficient communication.
Conclusion
Theories of emotional intelligence include the theory of Mayer and Salovey, which speaks of emotional intelligence as an ability, and the theory of Goleman, which refers to emotional intelligence as the capacity for determining own feelings and those of others. The concepts in these theories enable many researchers to develop personality tests and evaluations, which are helpful in determining the one’s personality. The use of these theories and concepts is important for one of the most essential information an individual can understand is his or her own personality or his or her own emotional intelligence. Knowing one’s personality and emotional intelligence is not only an additional information a person can reflect upon, but is a good measure for one’s evaluation of his or her improvement as an individual. The use of the personality tests, such as those mentioned above is important to give room for individual and group improvement and development. In line with these tests or evaluations, the results of these tests will be helpful for each person to assess his personality, to determine his weaknesses and strengths. Determining one’s strengths can be used to help others in achieving his or her goals in life, while identifying one’s weaknesses can be helpful for self-realization that improvement and development is essential and beneficial for an organization. With these, organizations must also make some actions or programs in response to the need of their employees for improvement. Emotional intelligence has a variety of advantages, and must be utilized properly for the success of an individual and the success of an organization.
Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com
0 comments:
Post a Comment